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The Cool Part:
The games themselves are a logician’s masterwork. No twist is foreseeable, and no puzzle unsolvable to the brilliantly minded Akiyama-san. If you like sitting for half an hour – or two - in complete suspense wondering how on earth they will ever manage to win each round through sheer guile, biting your fingernails in anticipation of victory – well that might explain why it’s so highly marathonable. Matsuda Shota plays his part to perfection as the ultimate silent type: an analyst of humans, ever noting the depths of lies and secrets, and calculating every possible move ages before it happens. You’ll find yourself sitting in absolutely stillness waiting for his manipulations to become clear and work their magic.
The Boring Part:
You get the feeling after a while that Akiyama-san will always be there to save the day. And then, the suspense becomes merely repetitive. Having watched half the drama, the pattern for each match firmly memorized, and my brain starting to unravel to keep up with each game’s rules and intricacies, I found myself spacing out. Fortunately, the drama anticipates just such an outcome. Get lost trying to understand the all the players’ plots and maneuverings? No sweat! Before the game ends, there’ll be at least a 20 minute step by step account of how everything happened, and why.
The Real Crux of the Matter:
Games and plotting aside, there’s something very unique about Liar Game’s premise. The story isn’t merely about forcing poor innocent, indebted people to play a game, practically to the death, financial death. Liar Game instead strives to uncover the heart of human nature itself. As the game’s masterful creator intones: “Humans are willing to betray each other in order to survive. Therefore, what’s wrong with deceiving others from the start or living faithfully for your own desires? That’s being human.”
The world he paints in one of black and white, where the black-hearted will always win, and the weak and pitiful will always lose. It’s the cunning versus the trusting, and the pack against the loner, not necessarily evil versus good. To reach the top, humans should or will be capable of stepping on anyone and anything; survival of the smartest, when the risk is losing everything. You lie or you lose.
In Kanzaki Nao, we not only have the most gullible and trusting character ever written; she is an allegory of trust and honesty, absolutely incapable of lying. To the exasperation of the Liar Game Tournament office (or perhaps to their increasing interest), Nao refuses to adhere to their rules. She tries again and again to prove that with teamwork, everyone can win and advance to the next round, maybe not with a profit, but at least debt free. The catch is, if Nao wins, it will disprove everything our Liar Game creator believes in. But for how long Nao can keep the players working together is the only true unknown. It’s a question not even solved by the end of season 1.
Conclusion
It’s hard to fault Liar Game for any real plot holes, especially when it’s obvious that the entire story has purpose beyond plain entertainment, fun, games or romance. Are all the concepts expertly done? Not always. Is it a little cheesy and overly moralistic at times? Absolutely. Will this be my favorite drama of all times, or will I ever rewatch it? No, and most likely not.
But the characters are generally good, and well acted for their roles. Matsuda Shota is fantastic to watch, especially when he gets his game face on. I’d like to say that Erika Toda didn’t overly impress me with her acting, but when her character is an allegory, and mostly unrealistic – that’s something I just can’t make a case out of disliking. Did it detract a little bit from my enjoyment overall? Sure, but then it was a fun ride and eventually I will continue the story, and finish the game another day.
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An adaptation of the original Nevertheless but with a different vibe and anticipated changes.
Everyone says this is the infamous Nevertheless remake but really it's not 100%.One major difference is that the ML is NOT a student but a subtitute teaching assistant. That changes the relationship dynamics portrayed.
The FL is not blinded by love like Nabi in nevertheless but more like she is lost, so does the ML. You don't get to feel that much toxicity here but more like mature adults who are very lost.
The characters are indeed based on the original Kdrama but they all give off different vibes and feelings. There is the lesbian couple but they are not really like the ones in the og. The other couple is also similar in some way.
The aesthetics and everything in this drama is exactly the Japanese type but with insipiration and elements from the original story, and as the saying goes this drama is very aesthetically pleasant!
overall, a decent drama so far. Concluded decently as well.
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This drama is well executed and projected.
At first, the drama seemed a little light-hearted. As we watched it continuously, it got deeper and deeper not only picking the interest but touching the hearts of many. Very great drama with exceptional execution of the fight scenes and heartfelt acting. The drama set the bar high to me and I can't find any drama with such astounding fight scenes. (I am very particular when it comes to fight scenes because I love watching martial arts).I love how the story unfolded and I realized how difficult it is to be a hero, seeking righteous justice. The denouement broke my heart but it made me realize that no matter how painful the consequences are, if we're doing something for righteousness, we should accept the duty, responsibility and result. Too much for my soft heart but too good to be disregarded.
I love the osts here and hearing them from time to time pleases my ears.
This is the BEST drama I've ever watched despite its flaws. Congratulations to all who contributed to the success of this drama! Salute to you all!!!💙💙💙💙
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1The Gangster who chose to win Peach's heart sincerely but as dramatically as possible!
GMMTV has always given us over-the-top romcoms, but it was never perfect until Me and Thee happened. It's the perfect blend of comedy and romance which leaves no choice but to love it wholeheartedly from the start till the end.The storyline is simple; a gangster falls in love with a photographer, Peach, who had never thought of falling in love with a man before. Till this point, it seems like a conventional lovestory, but it takes a different turn when the gangster, Thee, is your not-so-serious guy who can't take "No" for an answer. So Peach is out there questioning his life and what the hell the gangster wants from him. And it's a hilarious and heartwarming journey of two people with different upbringings and morals crossing their paths while trying to figure out their own heart.
The acting of Pond, Phuwin and Est is simply phenomenal! They delivered something I'd never imagined liking. Pond's over-the-top, exaggerated expressions, dramatic mood swings and dialogues made it so entertaining that one cannot help but fall in love with his hilarious charismatic persona. Will his character be on the wall of the most memorable character of the year or more like a living meme? Lol! On the other hand, Phuwin is us, the audience. He is THE MOST ORDINARY, SANEST PERSON YOU HAVE EVER MET! While watching this series, we sometimes can't help but question how ridiculous it is or sounds and Phuwin was right there, representing, questioning, judging every single ridiculous thing that doesn't fit the normal parameters for us. His character was so well written and acted that I felt like he wasn't really acting, he was just being himself the whole time. That's the charm of him I loved the most. While everything was going overly dramatically, Mok (Est) was just there, as Thee's bodyguard/friend, judging him and himself that he didn't get paid enough to tolerate his day-to-day ridiculous nonsensical wishes. It was so unserious and funny. I adored them all! Except PerthSanta storyline, it was unnecessary and poorly done. It was so toxic and nonsensical that their patch up didn't make sense for all the troubles they've through. Totally skippable! But WilliamEst hits different, their chemistry speaks louder even if they're just looking at eachother. They're the icing on the cake, yumm!
The cinematography was beautiful, the OST was upbeat, suited the ambience and their storyline perfectly. One thing I want to mention, it's the handpan instrument, the thing Thee called the "turtle shell thing". It was my first time discovering that instrument and I think it was love at first sight. Now I just can't stop listening to handpan music. It's so calming and gentle that it feels like a musical hug to my senses. I'll always be grateful for all the magical exposure this series gave me.
This is Pond and Phuwin's fourth work together. We've seen them work in Fish Upon the Sky, Never Let Me Go and We Are. Personally, I've never seen any of their work other than Never Let Me Go, and it failed to entertain me from an acting and storyline perspective. I never felt the urge to get interested in this CP because, for me, it seemed to be lacking in some ways. But this time it's different. Me and Thee is the first script which let them bloom into their best version of themselves by working on their facial expressions and acting skills. As they leaned fully into their comedic instinct, the result is one of the most entertaining BL premieres the studio has delivered in 2025.
Me and Thee is that gangster romance drama where you can put yourself in the Peach's character and see this whole storyline from his perspective. Why Peach? Because it has got those cinematic emotions and feelings written all over the series. Sometimes it's ridiculously hilarious, sometimes the characters get you swooning all over again, and sometimes you can't help but get emotional. It's a wholesome package for a bingeworthy drama.
Overall, it's a must-watch drama for any BL fan out there. You just cannot skip this one. It's a heartwarmingly wholesome series which I highly recommend curing your wrecked, tired and overworked heart. Just go for it!
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This review may contain spoilers
Superpowers, violence, and a star studded cast
A Korean superheroes drama? YES, PLEASE! The production value was awesome. You can tell a lot went into making the superpowers look believable. The regeneration, gunfights, action sequences and bloody gore were all high quality. The only disappointing aspect were the flying scenes. I think they may have ran out of money for that as it was very apparent that they were hanging on something as you can even see where the wire or hooks went into their clothes. As a viewer, that kind of sucked because I found it very distracting and awkward.As for the acting, I really liked how there were a lot of high caliber stars in this drama. I mean, who wouldn't want to be part of a Disney superhero drama? Not many opportunities like this come to Korea so it's great to see a lot of great actors taking part. Even the young rookie cast was good. The only one who I did not care for is YDG. I know he only has a minor role, but I really don't understand how he keeps getting roles. He constantly overacts. I thought his acting was so bad in The Forbidden Marriage that I'm so surprised he was able to get cast in this drama.
Now for the pacing, I thought each episode was good, but the overall series was lacking as a whole story wise. Too much of the series was spent on the backstories and flashbacks of each main character that basically only the last 2 or 3 eps were dedicated to the present story. Don't get me wrong...I did enjoy each backstory, but it was building up momentum for the present story except the climax didn't really deliver sense wise. It felt a bit pointless on the villain side. For example, (SPOLIER AHEAD: Why go through all this fighting only to give up so easily at the end? The whole self sacrificing bit seemed out of place because it was rushed in without any build up to make sense of the change of heart).
However, seeing that they left a clip after the credits to allude to a season 2, it would then make more sense that S1 was just part 1 - the set up. If I look at it that way, then the ending is less disappointing. But if they don't have a S2, then I'd have to say the ending felt incomplete because there were so many things left unexplained and some things not quite adding up.
But all in all, I found this drama entertaining and was quite delighted that Disney greenlighted an Asian superhero drama that did not offend me with concepts of Asian stereotypes that we often see in Hollywood movies. It's been a slow journey to get to this point, but I'm glad things are starting to turn around. I hope we get to see more!
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Watch it!
If I could give more than 10 I would. If you are still contemplating watching, what are you even doing? Drop what you are doing and watch NOW. Not a single bad second in those 12 episodes. My messy sassy children I love them so much. All three storylines are so different I don‘t even know which ones the best, but AouBoom will always have a special place in my heart no matter which show they are in so maybe themThe review needs to be 500 characters so I guess GO WATCH GO WATCH IT GO WATCH IT!
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This is a story about 6 people (who are somehow connected to one another). No Jin-Woo (Yo Ah In) is a famous star in Korea who can't forget his "love at first sight" lady. Jo Kyeong-ah (Lee Mi Yeon) is a beautiful drama writer who is always about work and don't like things to get personal. Ham Joo-Ran (Choi Ji Woo) is a woman in her 40s flight attendant she is whinny but very naive and cute and she feels that her life is over because she is old since all her friends already got married and she is still alone but she's not pathetic and doesn't feel sorry for herself. Kim Ju Hyuk (Jung Sung-Chan) is my kind of a man, he is someone who can easily be your best friend before becoming your boy friend. He is sweet and very dependable what girl wouldn't fall for him?. Lee Soo-Ho (Kang Ha Neul) is a pianist who is an anti social for personal reasons, and has never fallen in love or opened up to someone other than the people he already know. Jang Na-Yeon (Lee Som) is a sweet girl who has some issues at work and finds comfort in Kim Ju Hyuk as a friend. 6 persons 3 couples, though the story is full of cliches I can't say it's unique and I can't say it's unpredictable BUT what I can say is that with all the cliches and predictable plot this is slice of life pretty much realistic story about people who found each other and fell in love with each other. I loved all the love stories here and I can't choose which couple I loved the most as I liked them all but I think I have one that left me with more smiles and special feelings among the 3.
Acting: I know why they keep giving YAI older actresses the man has an awesome chemistry with them! I can't believe this is the guy I'm watching in Six Flying Dragons, I had to remind myself over and over it's him because he was totally different. I know it's a given that he'd be different but still it doesn't mean I won't be impressed by this change. Only great actors can give you the feeling that they are different person every time they take on different role and YAI is a master in that. Lee Mi Yeon and Choi Ji Woo what can I say about these two wonderful actresses? I love both them and to have them both in one movie is a dream come true. If you have never seen dramas for these two lovely ladies I suggest you start now it's never too late. Kim Ju Hyuk I haven't seen anything for this guy but I will surf his profile and start adding his work because he has earned enough credits with me here. Kang Ha Neul I've seen him many times before but this is my first time actually appreciating his performance. Lee Som never seen her before but I would like to see her in more dramas.
I'm glad I decided to drag myself to the cinema in this cold winter with my bad mood and chose this movie to watch because it completely changed my mood within seconds. I was smiling and laughing as sweet as it was. If you are looking for light hearted, romantic, sweet, funny and touching movie with great cast, full of cliches but still enjoyable then I suggest you add this to your list. The movie's title "Like Me Please" we all want to be liked and loved don't we? ^^
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This review may contain spoilers
Insufferably Decent
Only Friends follows an empty plot full of messes and unnecessary reconciliations between the most insufferable characters imaginable. An attempt to portray the different problems LGBTQ+ college students may face, its message remains unclear.I enjoyed the first few episodes, but my enjoyment declined as it went on. I like to believe the shippers of these pairings ruined the show's initial direction.
These actors deserve more than to be recognized as part of a ship. Khaotung and Mark stole the show with their performances, and Neo proved his versatility as an actor.
A decent GMMTV series, I applaud it for its execution of mature content.
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Kim Jeong Tae as the gang boss, Sang Gon; as usually, he plays bad well but let me give HIGH praise to Kim Sung Oh who plays Whi Gon, Sang's brother and supposed bodyguard. As the stuttering and evil brother of Sang, I must tell you he excelled! When he was stuttering his words, I wonder how much he practiced for that because it was done so well, I just wanted to help him finish his sentences! Yes, it was perfect.
The other characters of Jong Soo, played by Lee Shi Un and Soo Ji played by Jung Yu Mi (my first experience seeing her), both served their purposes well. Jong Soo, the misguided and downright stupid friend, even though he made poor choices, he was heart was in it. The romance between Soo Ji and Gang Chul was really not explored because the real romance was between mother and son.
This really was a well written and cast movie and I look forward to looking at it again.
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Near perfect in its simplicity
After reading some of the reviews, I think the whole issue of "not taking no for an answer" doesn't apply as much within a typical BL context. People have become overly sensitive to the idea of workplace sexual harassment. That's not what this is.One of the common tropes that this BL follows is for a cute guy, in this case, Jeong Ha Ram, to unabashedly pursue an emotionally shut-offed love interest, Seo Lee Joon, not letting their insecurities stop him from slowly but surely helping the other to overcome their insecurities. I didn't really get the impression Jeong overstepped his bounds with Seo. He understood how Seo had cut himself off from the world from the onset. Someone had to pierce Seo's bubble. Seo was going on three years of continuously having one-off meetups with guys, never once giving them a chance, as illustrated from the very opening scene.
Jeong mainly pursued Seo by teasing him and giving him small gifts, which is very typical in the BL genre. Also, the BL followed the standard arc of Jeong confessing to Seo, Seo reluctantly agreeing, then the inevitable third act break up, where Seo lets insecurities get the best of him, and Jeong gently reassuring, rather than pressuring, letting Seo come to the conclusion they are meant to be together and that he no longer needs to let his fears get the best of him. How can you not say that's a positive, love-affirming message?
I think too often on kisskh, people judge these BLs without taking into account how Korean and other Pacific Asian societal norms differ from Western ones, repeatedly applying misplaced Western "woke" values. Unless the BL conforms precisely to their expectations of the standard boy-girl love norms, these BLs are inevitably dinged, often unfairly, for violating Western sensibilities. Part of the charm of BLs is that they skip past a lot of the ho-humming you see in your typical straight K-drama romance, where the leads spend forever dancing around their mutual attraction.
In the case of Love Mate, in the short time it has, it follows a delightful romance between Seo and Jeong and their journey, keeping their bonding sweet and simple without getting lost in unnecessary plot elements. The two have remarkable, unforced chemistry where the lead actors use non-verbal expressions and body language to convey their feelings.
I give this BL a slightly higher score than it might deserve in response to all the unfair negative reviews. Honestly, if you let them dissuade you from enjoying this cute romance simply based on the misplaced argument that it is nonstop sexual harassment, which it isn't, you'll miss out on enjoyable two hours.
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STORY: The storyline is pretty simple and I even thought there were some "holes" in it but -as I said before- the -frightening- existencial question behind it draws the viewer's attention and makes him wonder "what if...".
ACTING/CAST: The acting is pretty average but it's actually a good thing because if the actors had acted too well the movie would have been unbearable to watch (I still shiver when I think of the delirious smile of the students-turned-crazy-murderers).
MUSIC: What I liked the more about the music isn't the music itself but its use. Classical music when used in a movie/series about normal-people-turning-cray-because-they-have-to-face-death adds something twisted/dark/cynical to it. The use of the slow, peaceful and beautiful music contrasts with what is happening and helps build this almost suffacating athmosphere.
REWATCH VALUE: I don't think this movie could be watched on a daily basis "just for fun". Like I said, the movie in itself isn't that good but it's this question behind it.
OVERALL: The movie is definitely a must-watch (except if you are already a freaking murderer or murderer-to-be). Points of view may differ but I believe the "best" part of it all isn't the blood and the killing but the way each character faced this bloody game and thus it makes us reflect on us.
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A surprisingly interesting watch
I had pretty low expectations (like one normally does for short cdramas) but this was surprisingly more than just excessive steamy scenes and hot actors.PROS:
1. I absolutely love their relationship dynamic: I love how he is always by her side supporting her decisions and how he is always willing to hear her out when she has suggestions. He also never broadcasts his actions when he helps her out.
2. FL representation: Most of these dramas paint the FL as an innocent submissive doe-eyed young girl who eventually submits to the ML but here they have made her a pretty strong and self-reliant individual who is not afraid to express her thoughts. they also managed to achieve a delicate balance in making her both a smart, strong and bold person while also maintaining her gentle and innocent nature (usually FLs who are strong are also quite obnoxious)
3. Business: The plot actually made sense for once and I love how the ML is not a rich billionaire CEO but rather a humble and hardworking man (I also think that the ML's actor is more suited to these roles than the hotshot CEO roles)
4. Relationship progress: I'm glad that they both take things slow and don't jump into anything, they start of as strangers with a small attraction for each other and they take things slow and explore each other's personality more before committing themselves to the relationship.
5. Fl's Background: honestly i think it was unnecessary to make her a rich heiress but it ok since it doesnt really play a major role in the plot.
6. Maturity: This show has some of the most mature leads that even some full length high budget shows lack and I think it was very well executed.
7. Great OSTS
8. Great visuals
CONS:
1. Should have been a full length show: This def. deserved a higher budget and length because almost everything about it was perfect, it wasn't your classic soap opera and the side plots were engaging enough to keep me hooked towards the end.
2. I wish there was a bit more romance
All in all this was a pretty good show and I'm glad I watched it. If you are expecting something hot and steamy you will be disappointed but it was pretty good considering my past experience of nonsensical plots.
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As a huge fan of twisted dramas, whenever I am looking for hardcore mystery; I always run to Japanese productions because they’re so professional at making those types of stories. Namonaki Doku is a mystery drama alright but it can never be considered an intense mystery.
The drama is divided into two big stories; the first one takes the five first episodes while the second one takes the rest of the drama. Namonaki Doku can be differently judged basing on the two stories which obviously contain two unrelated mysteries. The mystery build up in the first part was quite disappointing since it got a little amount of the run time and contained some slow events, but the facts revealing at the end was exciting and a bit surprising. As for the second part, the built up was impressive and rather interesting to follow that’s because the second mystery was deeper and relatively more twisted than the first one. However, its fact reveal wasn’t very outstanding.
Mystery in this drama flew like cool water; it can rarely make you jump of your seat despite the fact that it had a respectable amount of twists and turns. I am not saying that’s a bad thing but being used to hardcore mystery/suspense dramas; Namonaki Doku felt a bit unusual for me at first but at the end of the day, I realized that calm mysteries without many major flips and turns can also be thought-provoking in its own way, mainly because this drama handled some great psychological relations through its mystery built up.
This drama’s set of characters changed a bit between the first and the second story but our main lead was left untouched. Sugumura Soburo is nothing like other male leads in mystery dramas; he’s so honest and timid, he’s the kind of character that you can never imagine him solving other people’s problems and getting involved in big mysteries. That’s what characterizes this drama: An honest heartwarming man purifying poison in a non-sly way. The rest of the characters were pretty alright even if some of them weren’t very necessary for the story’s development. The acting was acceptable as a whole but some actors failed to deliver feelings especially in the first story.
Now let’s talk about the stunning music! It outclasses any other mystery drama’s music. I had to mention this strength point; the violin and the instrumental soundtracks were amazingly played at the right moment that I had to replay those parts.
As a last thought, I would say that Namonaki Doku is exclusively made for mystery dramas lovers but even so, I am sure that not all of them will appreciate it, essentially because it had a slow built up and it’s not considered an intense mystery.
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This review may contain spoilers
I will say I am quite critical on this drama since I watched Put Your Head On My Shoulder and really expected the same quality content. When the cast came out, I was like "ok, this looks decent." And so I was quite excited when it premiered. Sad to say, it didn't totally fulfil my expectations, maybe a 75%? It's still a pretty great drama tho! hating myself now for having too much stupid expectations.STORY (Major spoiler)
Sweet sweet sweet. AND I LOVED IT. The cold, smart and handsome male leads falls in love with the quirky and cheery female lead. It never grows old. And their interaction was soooooo cute. I love how Zhao Fan Zhou (ZFZ) is always teasing Zhou Xiao (ZX). Those super heart fluttering moments are worth your watch. The side storylines were also well plotted and didnt snatched the attention away from the main couple.
But then... here comes the not-so-good part. They tried to create some crisis for the main couple but it totally killed the story and flow for me. They broke up for 1 entire year and without a reason. I totally could not feel it anymore cause I feel like the details are not there. That 1 year seemed so empty like they didnt missed each other. And that totally destroyed the story for me:(
ACTING/CAST
Can you believe Simon (ZFZ) is a 92 guy? he totally didnt look like he is 28 to me.... his acting was commendable! the way he looks at ZX changes throughout the drama, from a cold stare at beginning slowly to a lovely adorable look. I am also glad that he didnt portray ZFZ as a nerdy guy (I saw some comments who say he was miscast, I beg to differ) Not all smart people are nerdy, sometimes some people have it all hahaha
I got to know Liu Ren Yu through China's Produce 101, she's sweet and quirky like her role should be. And given it's her first time acting (I think), she did a pretty good jobbb. I will definitely look forward to her next role. (but that hairstyle doesnt suit her)
MUSIC
There wasnt a super iconic song for this drama but all the songs were well suited for each scenes. Can I mention that Liu Ren Yu is such a good singer? Her voice is so sweet and she sings really well ....My fav is 心跳的证明. Go watch her performances on China Produce 101 too!
REWATCH
yes probably. but maybe I will be watching those heart fluttering clips instead of the full drama.
It's my fault for having too much expectations but thankfully, it was decent and made my stay-at-home better. Will definitely recommend you to watch, don't be too critical (like me haha) and you will enjoy it. Now go watch it.
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