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Tell Me What You Saw
13 people found this review helpful
by Kiffy
Apr 30, 2020
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10
This is worth watching if you love suspense/thriller dramas!! From episode 1 to 16 you're on edge and keep wanting more! The acting is powerful and soooooo well performed!! The cast is perfect from policewoman.man to killers...wow. From kids actresses/actors to adults actresses/actors...wow. And the plot, there's no 'useless episode'. All the episodes are important for the development of the story. Every second was well thought.

Watched it in two days. Now I am actually sad I've finished it so quickly!
AAAH I LOVED IT. I would definitely rewatch it.
OCN never disappoints.

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Watashi ga Renai Dekinai Riyuu
13 people found this review helpful
Jan 18, 2012
10 of 10 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 8.0
I went into this drama not expecting much, but I am happy to say I was wrong. This drama really does take a look at love through the eyes of women. Every woman is different, so there is no real way to truly understand how a woman feels about love. But with this drama, you get a good look into the minds/hearts of women.

I thought this was going to be a Japanese adaptation of "Sex in the City" which I really hated, but it wasn't. Granted there were some similarities, but not enough to make me think "Oh this is just like, that show." The feel of this drama enticed me from the first episode.. the way its written, makes you feel like your one of the girls, because no matter what, as a woman you will identify with any and all of the character's at some point or other.

Acting wise, I was very impressed with all the actresses, but the most impressed by Karina. I didn't recognize her at first, because she was just so natural, I honestly wonder if she was even wearing make-up for most of the show. Her character was more like me than the other's so I probably identified with her more. Even the supporting actors were good too. The music was really good as well. And I will be re-watching at some point.

Now, why this drama didn't get a perfect score.. At places I found myself saying, "Yeah that's true, but..." I felt like that a lot with this drama, so it could have been written a little better.

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Completed
Dating Agency: Cyrano
13 people found this review helpful
Feb 2, 2014
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 7.0
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 8.0
This was a very cute drama. TVN's 4th installment of the Flower Boy Series. It's a feel good drama & easy to watch.

Story: It's based on the Korean movie that was made in 2010. It's cute people using technology & a hopeless romantic girl to help people with love. It's just sweet.

Acting: I'm surprised with Sooyoung(SNSD)'s acting. It was very good. I actually felt some chemistry between the leads. Ah Rang's mini arc was so cute & heartfelt. I felt bad for him after his arc ended. It's not ground breaking, but it was not horrific either.

Music: Even though it's music is not the main theme. It was the one of the factors that made this drama so sweet. Ra.D's song, A Curtain Heart Fluttering, was such an amazing song. So does Jessica(SNSD)'s song, That One Person is You, also sweet song to listen too.

Would I rewatch: I don't always rewatch dramas, but it would be nice to rewatch this in a couple months or so.

Why watch?: The comedy, the romance, the love antics, the different arcs get better & better each time. If you like having second lead-syndrome, then this drama is for you. I did root for Master(second lead)for the main lead girl. But the main leads also have chemistry as well.

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Completed
Papadol!
13 people found this review helpful
by kailin
Aug 13, 2012
10 of 10 episodes seen
Completed 1
Overall 9.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 6.0
okay the subs didn't come out for episode 10, but even though my japanese is not good, i was able to get most of it..so i am going to write my review now!^^

first of all i really liked the idea of an idol playing himself. the story didn't have any big suprises, but it had a nice flow of events and was very enjoyable. it's interesting to see the behind the scenes life of a star and lets face it: we all want to see them being humans, just like you an me, sometimes.;)
i have liked nishikido ryo for a while, but still i was surprised by his acting: i think he is a truly great actor! i loved the kids, especially mei-chan, her character was played really well. the whole family atmosphere was very nice, crazy and fun, like they were a real family.

what i was missing was:
the love-story between nishikido and haru-chan. i mean, okay it was set up that they were already in love, then married and it showed all the problems that come with being in a family. but maybe a few more hugs or a little kiss on the cheek sometimes would have been nice. i really loved the relationship of nishikido and the kids. but they got more love and body contact from him than their own mom! poor haru-chan^^° yeah so basically missing the feelings between the main couple. but okay, i get it.. it's more a family drama and not a romantic love story.

also i think they could have had a little bit more of the guest star thing. it was fun and it would have been a nice fan-service!also the rest of kanjani8 should have at least met nishikido's family.
even though i am not a big fan of kanjani8 maybe they could have showed more of them being in a concert or.. dunno.. doing fun stuff together. but i guess there is enough of that in japanese tv already.^^°

the music was mostly from kanjani8 of course and went very well with the story.
i wouldn't rewatch it... unless i am missing my family and want to see another family having fun...or i want to see nishikido ryo's face :P

all in all it was a nice family drama with funny and touching moments. i'll recommend it to anyone who wants to take a break from overly emotional love stories and of course to fans of nishikido ryo!;D

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Completed
Song of the Dynasty
13 people found this review helpful
Mar 10, 2024
29 of 29 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 8.0
This review may contain spoilers

just the plot description- watched with really bad Eng Subs, so my apologies....

Hi everybody, MDL does not have the plot listed so here it is:
I watched this drama just to see Li Fei who imho is a darn good actor and should be playing in more mainstream pieces. This was a new FL playing with him and their scenes together were not as good as the ones we already swooned over (ha ha ha, we all know that Mr. Li knows exactly how to fool us into believing he is kissing the females). But back to the plot:
A young FL (14 or so) falls in love with a blind man, who is later cured and reciprocates the affection for FL. But then they get separated because he goes to war. Luckily, he comes back and reunites with FL, but... The old creep of an Emperor hell bent on getting the girl snatches her as his (I guess) concubine. The FL is heartbroken and so is her spirit because of the cruelty of the emperor towards her. As any sexually traumatized person, she only knows sexual acting out, and does so with any man that reminds her of the love she lost. Somewhere there with the lovers there is Crowned Prince (I think) with whom she has some steamy encounters and who clearly is very attracted to her. Then the old creepy Emperor dies, and FL becomes Dowager Empress, so perhaps crown prince saves her from death (?) However, the promiscuity of the Dowager goes on for about 15 years and the whole country hates her for that. Among her lovers there is a man who reminds her so much of her lover that she starts doing things she is unsure about. It doesn't help that she somehow also gets involved with the new Emperor....
Don't hate me for this. Just trying to give the community more info on this mini drama. I will look for better subs in English and then write a review.

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Completed
Lighting Up the Stars
13 people found this review helpful
Aug 23, 2022
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10

This one is an insane tear-jerker but also belly-acher

This movie has EVERYTHING.

It made me laugh and made me cry SO many times over just the one and a half hours. My mom cried. My brother cried. It was a crying fest in the theater I was in. No one left their seats until the ending credits were over because of how we were still reeling from our emotions.

The characters made me just fall in love with them and their story. The acting is INCREDIBLE, especially from the little girl. She’s just adorable and thinking of her makes me tear up again lol. Her precious relationship with her father teaches us so many things about what we should be grateful for in life- namely love, life itself, and each other.

Being Chinese, the English title didn’t make sense to me until I watched the movie because the direct translation of the Chinese title 人生大事 is “The Big(gest) Thing In Life.” But “Lighting Up The Stars” makes so much sense and I don’t think I could come up with a better title.

The delve into Sichuan culture specifically was also heartwarming to see on the big screen. I don’t often get to watch Chinese movies so it was really a treat to get to hear the Sichuan accent/dialect and catch a glimpse of life there.

As an ABC, this movie was everything to me. It gave me a peek into a life I would never live, but also made me reflect on the life I DO live.

10/10 on everything. Acting, music, story, production. This one gets all the stars.

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Imperfect Victim
13 people found this review helpful
Aug 6, 2023
29 of 29 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 9.5
Rewatch Value 8.5

The grey areas, handled with care

“What are you more afraid of? More than people harming your body?”

“Afraid of the end of everything. Afraid of losing the future. Afraid of losing the present. Afraid of losing a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Afraid of confronting.”

The story started simply with the police receiving a report of a rape case happening between a CEO of multinational company and his subordinate. The CEO suavely said it’s mutual relationship, while the lady just seemed shock and unable to affirm anything.

What’s interesting is the approach and direction the Imperfect Victim took to unravel this case through the perspective of Lin Kan, who is the defence lawyer of the CEO, Mr. Cheng. It took a very very long time to figure Lin Kan’s true stance. On one hand, we know she will competently, and perhaps, flawlessly defend her client’s case as a professional lawyer. On the other hand, we remain unsure and intrigued on her next steps as it seems like she empathised, more than any other, with Zhao Xun as a woman herself. I appreciated the dynamics between Lin Kan and Zhao Xun. The kind words and silent understanding that Lin Kan offered when dealing with Zhao Xun. It might be too idealistic, I loved how the former was able to do it in ways that protected both her professional integrity and the latter, despite being the opposing parties.

What really caught my surprise was that I enjoyed how the show patiently and tactfully showed the psychological journey of Zhao Xun go through, as the imperfect victim in this case, from silence to speaking out, from self shaming to facing it, from stepping up to doubting to giving up to accepting herself.

It also tactfully showed the discussions from multiple parties - at the police level on how they deal with cases like this, the honest view of how both genders would interpret the situations, the relationship dynamics between the CEO with his wife and mistress, as well as the impact of seemingly harmless comments by the public and coworkers.

I am not one that seek for dramas that deals with such heavy social topics, but Imperfect Victim did perfectly capture the dilemma that many modern women face in the workplace - on compromise, on tolerance, on numbing, on consent, on support and on asserting.

The visual storytelling, camera angles, story directing and actors / actresses are done well. I can’t imagine how this story will turn with a less capable production team and cast.

This is not a show for everybody, but it is made with everybody in mind, including the men despite being a women-centric show. For a show that deals with such complex social issue - sexual harassment and perceived consent - it somehow manage to bring out the multi perspectives and interpretations tactfully and carefully.

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Completed
Our Shining Days
13 people found this review helpful
by Senpai
Oct 6, 2017
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 7.5
Rewatch Value 7.0
Charming and lively youth comedy set in a music school where classical Chinese music becomes a fun competitive battle.
A  town somewhere in China, Chen Jing, sophomore Chinese Music at Zhongxia  Academy of Music's Afiliative High School, sees the handsome classical  music student Wang Wen practicing on the piano and immediately falls in  love with him ... The film goes far beyond the novel, it teaches about Chinese music and  proper classical music in a rather energetic, rather entertaining, but  fun, youthful comedy driven by an animated performance by TV actress Xu  Lu.
The  film sustains its energy from a mass of small details and quirky ideas,  beginning with the two music departments being so hostile to each other  that they are separated by an iron gate in the same building. An innovative film full of energy and innovative ideas that is worth watching.

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Completed
Killer and Healer
13 people found this review helpful
Apr 10, 2021
37 of 37 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.5
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10

Most Underrated Series! It deserves more love and appreciation!

This is the series I have been waiting for nearly 1 and half years and it finally dropped without any announcement so understand how surprised I was when the episode 1 aired!

Plot- This series takes place in Chinese Republic Era when Opium was really a big issue in China. This story is about a police man whose life turned upside down when his father become opium addicted. Losing his father to the drugs and his mother to cruelty his father made her go through to buy drugs initiated her to "take her own life" Jiang Yue Lou's life was very difficult until he was adopted by Commissioner Bai thus pursuing the career of police to free Jingcheng from drugs. Then we have Chen Yu Zhi a benevolent doctor whose only purpose is to save people regardless of their background. This is a story of a determined yet unstable violent cop and a kind doctor coming together to bring peace to their town that has become victim to the drugs along the way they healed and redeemed each other.

Characters- Jiang Yue Lou seeing his happy family shattering to pieces in front of his eyes due to opium made him hate anyone who is link to the smuggling of the drug. At the very early age he had become the prominent figure in the Police Bruere however he is very arrogant, emotionally unstable, violent and cold in nature. He is intelligent, and righteous but when he loses his temper (very easily I may add) and does things without even caring for the consequences . He is even ready to sacrifice his own life if it means opium smuggling will come to an end. He is very determined and very hard to get along with, only handful people are close to him but even those don't know many pains that Jiang Yue Lou hides to himself due to Jiang Yue Lou having trust issues.

Chen Yu Zhi is completely opposite of Jiang Yue Lou. He is calm and collected, in control of his emotions and very kind and always try to help anyone he can. To him the world is not black and white rather there are lots of shades of grey even then Chen Yu Zhi is willing to help others. Through out the series we see how clever and deep understanding he has of people. He is not naïve, he knows he is living in a Era where China is going through very rough time economically and politically. He is aware that many people had no options but to opt to illegal ways to make a living. He knows the world is cruel to people especially to the poor that is why he tries to be kind to the people even though some may take advantage of his kindness. Through out the series we see how forgiving he is to the people even to those who deeply hurt him.

The relationship between our main leads started in a misunderstanding but slowly it turned into something beautiful and healthy relationship. They trust each other, confines in each others about the pain and secrets that no one one knows. For Jiang Yue Lou Chen Yu Zhi is the lucky star and a blessing. We see that it doesn't take much time for our cop to become smitten with our doctor. From episode 1 we get to see Chen Yu Zhi has a different effect on him. Through out the series we see how slowly Chen Yu Zhi helps Jiang Yue Lou with his bipolar disorder and helps him to learn how to trust others, how to care for others and that loving someone caring for someone is not weakness, showing your true emotions is not a weakness , showed him that the world is not black and white, that it's okay to let go of his anger and his tragic past for a better and peaceful life. Slowly Chen Yu Zhi healed our angry and lonely cop. To a certain degree it felt like Chen Yu Zhi's fate was to heal Jiang Yue Lou. His life mission. The ending at least gave me that impression.

Chu Ran the best Female lead!! I loved how clever and independent she was considering the Era she was in. Despite being in one sided love with Jiang Yue Lou not even once she acted selfishly or did anything bitchy that we usually see in bls often. Rather she was being helpful and respectful to our main leads. She was such a brave woman!!!

The Pros- The acting especially Mao Zi Jun. He is Outstanding actor and its pains me that he is so underrated! A true crime! He had done a phenomenal job portraying such a complex 3 dimensional character. You can see with different character he had different chemistry and his different acting in different scenes. He deserves recognition. Ian was 21 when he filmed this series he very young and it kind of showed. His acting was good but he needs more training and experience. Still his acting in some of the scenes were very good.

The cinematography was so beautiful my god! This show is aesthetically pleasing to the eyes. The prop team did an excellent job.

The music!! All the songs are good !

Dubbing was perfect and accurate!

No bitchy female lead trying break up or interfere between the boys! Chu Ran is the best female lead I have seen in a while in C-dramas

The Cons- MGTV and their ridiculous editing! I understand why some scene got deleted but the rest *sigh* The thing with MGTV is that they pick up projects that they can't do justice to!

The inconsistency in the script writing. There are some scenes that really doesn't make sense. Tbh I don't know who to blame because I have listened to audio drama and in that version the inconsistence is basically gone and is more detailed than the drama version. So is it editing fault or what I don't know!

Also I hated how they portrayed Bipolar disorder. I may not have enough knowledge on bipolar but I know for sure the writer has zero idea how a bipolar disorder person functions what struggles they go through and what occurrence makes them have a episode. Seriously I wish especially Asian script writer does their homework before portraying any kind mental illness.

The director! He is not an competent person that's all I will say.


Honestly people watch this series! It's delight to see how Chen Yu Zhi and Jiang Yue Lou slowly falls in love each other! Two different people with completely different characteristic and personality and ideals falls in love! I know some people see this a bromance and I respect that but for me it's clear that these two are in love with each other romantically! The plot is nothing new but the acting and the chemistry between actors is superb! I have deeply fallen in love with this wonderful series! This series really shows how bad some humans can become and for some there is no redemption! Just give it a shot guys!

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Completed
Be with You
13 people found this review helpful
by yue eun Free Range Tomato1
Sep 28, 2023
24 of 24 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.5
Story 9.5
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 9.5
This review may contain spoilers

everyone has their own backstory.

i enjoyed this series! i happen so to randomly come over this series but oh man, i do not regret it. this show is severely underrated btw!

this show has its comedy side, touching side and each main character has their own tragic backstory that will be revealed slowly. everyone might be slow, dumb yet goofy but their backstory really breaks my heart. the build up with the backstory is amazing, the way they have healed but the wound opened up again to get the actual closure needed. my top few eps are 14, 16, 18 and 22. if you watch the scene, you would understand why i really enjoyed these episodes.

they are fated that they all met at by jumping of the cliff and naming themselves by the wording 3, 4 and 5 inside in. it was so funny! they are "found family" as they found comfort within each other while facing their struggles, while understanding each other without saying much, while supporting each other and stay with each other no matter what.

i enjoy the friendship between all the characters and if you are wondering if there is any romance... it is like lowkey and not that obvious. you get to enjoy many different cp types of feels. if you are wondering how i am shipping, its 3+5 and 4+ji. i am waiting for the next season as the ending wrote, "the first season ended"

however, mango's subbing is bullshit because as a chinese, i saw the chinese wordings and the english subs, i am closed to vomit blood. it is so so badly subbed. so for those who does not understand, you might need to wait for better subs. like they subbed 你相信我吗? - it was supposed to be "do you believe me?" but they subbed to "do you miss me?" ...??!!

as for the acting, i think they did a good job! the main characters ranges from '97 to '02 and their acting is good! what i love is that their are a lot of dramatic and big expression type of scenes but they are able to not overact and overdo it. with the right amount that you won't think that it is too over the top and get annoyed about it.

it might seem boring at first but as it goes on, it will get better. trust me. anyways, please give this show a chance! thank you~

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Completed
Emergency Couple
12 people found this review helpful
by Asp
Apr 23, 2014
21 of 21 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 7.0
What drew me into this story was a recommendation from a friend who rarely points out any romantic dramas, so I was intrigued enough to check it out myself.

In story department, it was rather realistic and not off-putting by any means, I actually cared about every character in this story and not that much about the main relationship, because it was more of a background to everything that was going on in the story.

The cast is interesting, there's a lot of chemistry going on between Song Ji Hyo and Choi Jin Hye, and their scenes were quite funny, especially at the beginning of the drama. I think the character I was most concerned about was Kook Cheon Soo, because he seemed a lot like an average person lost in a giant white world and in himself at the same time; simply an individual who can't connect himself with others - more of a good book character that you grow fond of after awhile, rather than an actual drama character. I also loved Shim Ji Hye's character, she depicts a role model to look up to, and Lee Sung Min was classy as well.

There's a few songs from what I recall, and the usual dramatic tones of ER are there, so I have no complaints about it...but oh, Choi Jin Hyuk can sing quite well? It was an interesting input to a certain episode.

There's a solid rewatch value to this drama, maybe not for these 2-3 episodes that I found quite redundant and filler-like, but the entirety gives much to see even second time around.

Now, for the roundup, I'll admit I watched this in two days, and I think that tells a lot about just how indulging and interesting this drama turned out to be. I'm not usually hyped over hospital dramas or couples been-there-and-back, but the final overall of the drama made it so much more than a rekindled romance with a hospital as its back setting. I'm sure all other reviewers have noticed that as well, seeing as there's much of positive feedback this drama has received. There is, simply, so many aspects of life contained here to relate to.

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Completed
Starlit
13 people found this review helpful
Apr 13, 2015
22 of 22 episodes seen
Completed 1
Overall 4.5
Story 1.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 1.0
Wish someone wrote a review so I did not have to suffer through this drama. I watched it because I have become a big Jerry Yan fan because of Loving, never Forgetting. He was also great in Down with Love. However, Starlit, was one big painful drama to watch. Basically watching a young, beautiful & vibrant girl, slowly die from MS. Also painful to watch are the love ones (friends, boyfriends, father,etc) who surround her with love & support but also suffer the agony of watching her body slowly deteriorate. Drama left me thorough depressed, wished I knew ahead of time and skipped it.

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The Wedding Banquet
13 people found this review helpful
Aug 4, 2022
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 6.5
Rewatch Value 8.0
This review may contain spoilers

What we do for love

The Wedding Banquet showed what people will do for love--love for lovers, love for tradition, and love for family. The movie's title comes from a raucous and drunken wedding banquet that seemed to signal the beginning of a couple's life together. Problem was, the couple being celebrated were a sham and the real love was between a gay couple trapped in a show for one man's traditional parents from Taiwan.

Wai Tung and Simon had been lovers living together happily for five years in America. Wai Tung lived a busy, upwardly mobile lifestyle by all appearances assimilated into American life. Meanwhile back in Taiwan, his parents were ready for him to be married and producing grandchildren unaware he was gay. So determined were they that they set him up in an expensive matchmaking service. Simon decided Wai Tung should marry Wai's tenant, Wei Wei, a broke artist without a green card, to help her out and get Wai's parents off his back. The ruse worked well enough that Wai Tung's parents decided to come to America for the wedding. Cue the merry marriage high-jinks and misunderstandings.

The Wedding Banquet could have veered off into slapstick comedy or morose melodrama but Ang Lee managed to walk a fine line as Wai Tung confronted his life with Simon and the expectations of his family. The comedy arose more out of character and the situations these people found themselves in rather than random sight gags much to my relief. Wai Tung loved Simon and his parents and didn't want to disappoint either. He also felt responsible for Wei Wei who was obviously in love with him. Simon also felt real as he became the odd man out while the farce took place in his home. And Wei Wei ended up facing the emotional consequences for marrying a man who loved another man. Both she and Simon came to love Wai Tung's parents. Throw in the parents with their own complicated emotions and what could have been a trite story turned meaningful and heartfelt.

The actors were all quite capable, with Gua Ah Lei giving a truly complex performance as a mother wanting her son to be happy, preferably within the confines of their traditions. Winston Chao and Mitchell Lichtenstein brought their characters to life as they bickered, loved, and fought to be together.

1993 was a different time than today. In most states gay couples were not readily accepted and marriage was out of the question. New York, for the most part, was more open-minded. This movie, without resorting to being preachy or patronizing, showed a loving gay couple working through their problems, albeit with some hilarious and heartbreaking moments. The relationship felt real and consequential. It was also a time when cell phones were as big as WWII walkie-talkies and were used for the sole purpose of a phone and to make the occasional call---minutes were expensive!

Made for only $750,000 Ang Lee poured more heart than money into this film. Even with a few rom-com contrivances, I found myself rooting for all of these people. I desperately wanted them to have their happily-ever-afters. The Wedding Banquet wasn't perfect, but it was perfectly funny and heartwarming and romantic. In the end, everyone learned a little more about love and acceptance even when they didn't come in the package that was expected.




8/4/22

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The Way We Were
13 people found this review helpful
Jun 12, 2018
50 of 50 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 5.0
Story 5.0
Acting/Cast 6.0
Music 4.0
Rewatch Value 2.0
This review may contain spoilers
Miraculously, I made it through all 50 episodes (albeit with a lot of skimming.) Let me preface this review with some hopefully helpful info first.

1) If you are a Tiffany Tang/Luo Jin enthusiast, you should note that although Tiffany Tang is listed as the lead role, Director Liu Jiang stated in several interviews that this is NOT a show with a clear female lead, and this is not one of those romances where two female leads fight over some guy. It is also not a show with romance as its key.

2) I've seen people comparing the title of this show to the Taiwanese show "The Way We Were" and the classic film "The Way We Were." Both of these comparisons are wrong, because the show's title is lost in translation. Its Chinese title is a line in a classical poem by Tao Yuanming. The poem talks about the poet's own experience as a government official, and all the corruption and nepotism he witnessed that ended up angering him and leaving him to give up his title and "return" home -- which is the true meaning of this show's title, and the concept this show is based upon.

"To get out of this and go back home! [This line here is the show's title.]
My fields and garden will be overgrown with weeds--I must go back. [Because corruption rots you from the inside.]
It was my own doing that made my mind my body's slave
Why should I go on in melancholy and lonely grief?
I realize that there's no remedying the past
But I know that there's hope in the future.
After all I have not gone far on the wrong road
And I am aware that what I do today is right, yesterday wrong."

Now that I've got that out of the way, let's get on with the review.

The Acting: All right, so, I have never been a fan of Luo Jin or Tiffany Tang (that's not to say I don't like them, I'm just ambivalent and don't go out of my way to watch their shows) and to be honest, I was not floored by their acting in here. On the contrary, I was pleasantly surprised by the acting of Female 2. I think her name is Amelie Xu... a quick search on Baidu tells me that she's a newbie in the ent. circle, this might be her first major TV role. Extremely impressive, imo. In fact, I think it would have been better to name this girl as the female lead, but obviously for marketing reasons they wouldn't have since as a newbie, she wouldn't bring in ratings. The actors of the parental units are all very well-known "old" actors with impressive careers -- I wish I had seen more of them, especially the two corrupt fathers. It would've made the show more bearable for me. Another actor that surprised me was that of Shu Che's father's mistress. Also, obligatory: The English in here sucks. I know it's not their native language, but you'd think these actors would've put more effort into comprehensible English pronunciation considering they're acting as graduate students who are good enough to get into fake-Stanford University. There's a difference between speaking English with an extreme accent and just vocalizing the sounds of English cus you have no idea wtf you're saying and you're just bs'ing your way through your lines.

The Story: It's hard for me to review the story without going into specifics that may or may not be considered spoilers, so I'll just say that the concept of this story could have, and should have, been great. (If I took a shot for every time I thought this about a cdrama, I'd be dead, honestly.) I thought the title was clever, and it even amazed me that they drew from a classical Chinese poem lol. You don't get a lot of cdramas these days where the creators put *that* much thought behind their stories. I could even have handled the extremely slow pace, if only it had used the slow pacing to flesh out important things that contributed to the story somehow. Think about it, this could have been a really deep show using Tao Yuanming's poem as its linchpin, discussing the issues of nepotism and corruption by those in power. I actually think the writers and the director genuinely tried, otherwise they would not have included the poem in the first place, but for lack of skill or whatever reason, they didn't succeed. Ultimately, this is (or rather, is supposed to be) a story about morality and ethics.

Should you watch this?: Listen, if you're a *die-hard* fan of Tiffany or Luo Jin, or both of them, as I am assuming the vast majority of those who have this show on their list are, skim for their scenes. If you're the average c-drama viewer, I'd suggest not wasting your time. Unless you're like me and like to drown in the sorrows of lost potential. However, I do recommend watching Female Lead 2. I see great things in her future and I hope better scripts are coming her way, given the positive attitude Chinese netizens have towards her acting in this show.

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Completed
Homemade Love Story
13 people found this review helpful
Oct 27, 2021
100 of 100 episodes seen
Completed 1
Overall 6.0
Story 6.0
Acting/Cast 7.0
Music 7.5
Rewatch Value 1.0
This review may contain spoilers

Lower Your Expectations and Raise the Speed

“The most frustrating is the lack of proper consequences.”

This phrase from one of the only other reviews of the completed Drama brought back many memories.

I don’t know how many other Dramas that user has seen, but the angry rant (their words) about the way ALL the villains, and especially the worst of them, get off scot-free in this Drama reminded me of my own reactions the first 50 or so times I saw that happen in a K Drama. Then I learned to expect it, as an integral part of this sort of Drama. Rather than punishing the wicked, or even having them experience any sort of meaningful redemption arc, fully a quarter to a third of the episodes in Dramas like this are all about them getting away with it while their victims suffer more and more. I expected that in this Drama, and got it, in spades. As soon as the truly VILE people started showing their true character, I 100% expected them to face zero consequences for being human garbage, and so I was not upset or disappointed when my expectations were met. That’s the “Lower Your Expectations” bit.

The Raise Your Speed bit is simple – watch on FF. Knowing what to expect from a Drama of this sort, I watched most of it on 3XFF, only watching scenes at normal speed that were about developing relationships, whether romantic or familial. All the plotting and scheming and horrid people being horrid scenes I just zipped through. And there was enough of the sweet, the warm and the touching to make this Drama an acceptable watch, under those circumstances. I started this Drama for Bona, having enjoyed her other acting roles a lot (I’m not a K-Pop stan), and she and her arc did not disappoint. The Drama gave me what I wanted because I treated it like a buffet, skipping past all the dishes that didn’t interest me.

If you can’t or won’t watch a Drama with heavy use of FF, or if your blood boils at the thought of nasty people escaping effectively ALL consequences for their nastiness, then don’t watch this. But if you CAN watch on FF, can tolerate the bizarre insistence these Dramas have on letting evil go unpunished, and want some sweet stories along the way, then do check it out.

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