Reviews

Lovely Time Travel Love Story

I'm not going to say anything differently than what has already been said, but of course, I will say something anyway. I Feel You Linger in The Air was a beautiful time-traveling love story with the addition of the harsh lives of women and gay people, told through a spectacular lens and with such deep-rooted characters and their dynamics. I would say that this is the best historical Thai BL I've ever seen, but it also acts as my first historical Thai BL, so it's automatically the best.

Let's Dive In.

I Feel You Linger in The Air tells the budding romance of Jom and Yai, a man from the future who inevitably falls for a man from the past. Furthermore, we also get to see the lives of Yai's family, friends, and servants who all play a passionate role in the changing of the past and the implications it will have on the future.

I'll start by saying this: I liked the plot/story a lot more than I liked the romance. Now hear me out, nothing was inherently wrong with the romance (they were super cute, super domestic, and everything that came out of Yai's mouth was just heart-wrenchingly beautiful), but the complexity of the story overall was much more entertaining for me. I think it's because I love slow-burns and while this wasn't necessarily fast, it felt like they got together pretty quickly. Yes, they don't get together until about halfway through the series, but by then, it feels like they rushed them to get together. It was building perfectly until, bam, Yai asked him to be his lover. Super romantic, but not 100 percent believable just yet, especially when Yai says things like "I'll love you forever" and they just got together. If anything, I would've liked them to wait longer, maybe after Yai's engagement ceremony when he realized he was to be wed to Busabong (I think that's how you spell it, she's not listed on MDL). When he felt that urgency and that yearning to be with Jom. Still, regardless, I liked the chemistry and they did well when their intimate scenes so I'm not all that pressed.

But now onto this spectacular story. One thing I hate about time travel is when the character is thrown into the future or past and immediately someone from that time is telling them what year it is, who they are, and what they are to the main character. But in IFYLITA, Jom was truly thrown into the 1900s and didn't figure out what time and year it was until he did some exploring on his own and found out -- because nobody in the 1900s thinks that someone of his age wouldn't be sure of what's going on. It was perfect. Also just the little details: The currency being different, the way they dressed, their everyday activities, the food they ate, the way they spoke, the accuracy of how women and LGBT+ people were treated, surprise that Jom was able to speak English, when Jom said more modern terms like cool or yo, the creation of Bangkok having not happened yet. It's obvious that they took their time with the structure and details of this story and it's very much appreciated.

Now usually I could care less about the lives of the side characters, but I was almost a little more interested in their story than the main couple. Like UeangPhueng and Meay for example -- loved them for real. Same with Fong Kaew and her trying to find out what happened and getting Mr. Robert to finally get arrested for his actions. Same with James and Ming whose stories weren't as developed, but I just loved seeing them on my screen. It's very rare when I'm interested in everything going on in a BL series excluding the actual BL couple.

The only part I'm having trouble figuring out is when Jom makes his way back to the present. So Yai shows up; does that mean Yai was reincarnated? Put into a bottle to be released once Jom comes back? Is Jom just seeing things? Seeing a ghost? Is Yai going to go through the same thing that Jom did, just this time in the present? And after the credits, we see the other Yai who was a lot more stern and obviously from a different period -- If there's to be a second season, will Jom be falling for another Yai? Will there be two Jom's? So many questions, I hope eventually these get answered.

Ratings:

Story: 9/10 - Magnificent. I'll only not give it another star because it is a little bit open-ended and the first episode was a tad bit slow. But overall, the story was perfect. These were hour-long episodes and to my surprise, I didn't once check to see how far along we were, the story is just that good that it keeps you captivated throughout.

Acting: 9/10 - Bravo! Everyone did such a good job. Jom and Yai could cry when need be, and the actors just did so perfectly at portraying their characters. I loved Nonkul's (Jom) acting the best and definitely Guide's (Ming) next.

Music: 6.5/10 - I paid attention to it a little bit, but what I heard was good, however, there were definitely times when the music was too loud and made it hard to hear the characters talking.

Recommendation Value: 8/10 - Overall, such a good series. But it is long, even when you're not thinking about its longevity, but it still took me about two weeks to finish, so probably not the BL to watch if you just aren't patient and don't want to sit through the hour-long episodes. I will say that I almost didn't watch this because of the very slow pace of the first episode, but trust me, it gets so much better after that. I highly recommend it for the story alone -- so much time has gone into this and it's worthwhile for sure.

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I hated EVERY SINGLE female character. It's like they share the same braincell: they're all self-centered, selfish, entitled, ready to blame everyone around them when things don't go their way, use people when they need them then throw them away like garbage. They also think they're better than everyone and don't hesitate to humiliate the less fortunate.
The male character were slightly better and more coherent, but I found myself grinding my teeth every time they were around a woman: sexism was skyrocketing, women were portraied like something to win over and own, and every rejection was seen as a challenge. I can't name one single relationship that was healthy, all of the "romances" were based on a wacked obsession rather than love.
Healthy relationship between parents and children? I don't know her.
Oh, almost forgot: the smartest character here has the IQ of a retarded celery stalk.
Going trough this lakorn was painful and it's such a shame because it had all the right cards to be a good story. The setting and the basis were promising but ,god, all of that went down the drain.

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Okay first I just wanna say that 'yay, im the first one to post a review up!' But now that I've said that, Iet me "start off" by saying that oh snap this movie was freaking amazing. I was literally on the edge of my seat during the entire film! I never really understood why the main character was into what he was into but it didn't matter because i was following him throughout the whole thing! for anyone who is contemplating whether or not they should see this movie, stop hesitating and just do it! i promise you that you will not regret it especially if you're into independent suspense films. Kudos to the amazing cast and crew, and a special round of applause to the main actor, Byun Yo Han for being a damn good actor who executed his character like it was nothing! This guy seriously needs more roles because he is such a talented actor. He can do roles that not a lot of Korean actors are willing to touch. That being said, the entire film was just done so well from the dialogue down to the camera angles. Tinker Ticker was actually my first Korean independent film (i think it was an indie) but it most certainly will not be my last!

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It's bad.

Realism and Representation: This is a feel-good drama and doesn't do realism but Cheng and Lin did check with each other if they both like guys. All the brothers are either gay or bi. I didn't see any stereotypes, caricatures and heteronormativity.

There really isn't much to say but that the story, dialogue and directing is really crap. Cheng is way over the top because of his Korean Tough Rich Guy persona. He KIDNAPPED Lin, among other bullshit. The dialogue is crap because the director couldn't "show not tell" so the characters had to narrate the scene. They could've used voice-overs to convey their thoughts but the director somehow preferred that they talk to themselves? All the relationships are cringe-worthy, with the Cheng-Lin one slightly less so.

The only good things are that they actually got a Korean actor to portray a Korean character. The main couple (Cheng and Lin) are the most natural and I think they'd give much better performances if the script and directing were good. The third brother's love interest (Yan Yue)'s sister, is literally a sexual predator. It's not funny.

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OMG this is like 1 of the best drama's ever made. I loved it. Not only does it have a smexy vampire but it's not a stupid teen wet dream. This drama has been put on my top 5 fave list & I have a new fave actor added as well. HEHEHE!

OK so I am done gushing about how much I liked it. Now to tell u y I like it. Well it has a SMEXY vampire who just happens to solve crimes. What could be better? I'm not rly sure but I will let u know when I find out. Also, there is humor. I loved this b/c not only am I devouring eye candy but the eye candy makes me laugh as well. Smexy w/ a sense of humor. Screams "THE BESTEST DRAMA EVER!"

Now to be serious. There was a sense of exhilaration that was felt while watching the crimes being solved. The actors and production team created a wondrous feeling of suspense. Even through the ending there is still that feeling. I am screaming for a 2nd season b/c I swear the story can't just end. There has to be more to the story. Well at least other drama peeps and I want more.

I will totally recommend that every1 watch this drama b/c it is so worth it. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. Any1 who watches it will enjoy it for sure.

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great visuals but repetitive

This is the kind of drama where you know it is going to end badly but you find yourself watching anyway. I have no idea where this story is going to go because I didn't read the webtoon but I have an idea and it's not good.
This drama definitely has a few appeals: visually appealing leads, beautiful cinematography, and the romanticism of a toxic relationship. And sure we've seen college dramas, but this one centers around art majors. That's an interesting and unique touch to this show that I like a lot. But despite these things, the show still feels a bit bland. It kinda feels like the same thing happens every episode but in different ways and I'm kinda tired of it. Nabi puts her foot down, calls Jae-eon out on his bs, puts him in his place, and ghosts him, then he'll come crawling back and do something swoon-worthy and Nabi will let him off the hook again and again and again. I get that's kinda the whole point with this drama but my god did it get repetitive fast.

Song Kang has really surprised me by how many shows he's been in lately, not to mention how diverse his roles are. I hear he might be enlisting soon so he's probably trying to establish himself before serving, and I think he has already. His acting still needs improvement on the emotional side. Or maybe I'm just saying all this because the only thing I've seen him in besides this is Love Alarm. We know he can play the handsome, likable guy but I wanna see more depth from him as an actor. Han So Hee is okay here. Her performance is alright but I really expected more from her after her performance in TWOTM. She was very good there even tho her role was kinda minor so I was expecting a lot from her first lead role. Sadly I was disappointed. I like her character's background but it's frustrating watching her make the same mistakes with Jae-eon in every episode. At least she looks incredibly good with the ML, ri

Now unto Yang Do Hyuck a.k.a. potato boy. He is so gosh darn cute. He's so kind and sweet and humble-the opposite of Jae-eon. You prob already know which team I'm on(lol) but if Nabi ends up with Jae-eon and not him I will be so mad. How can you say no to his puppy eyes?

- I'm back after a month of seeing the finale and I gotta say in really disappointed in the ending.
(CAUTION: SPOILER ALERT)
So unrealistic yet unrealistic at the same time. Maybe I played myself but I had a small glimmer of hope that Nabi would choose neither of the MLs and perhaps take the self-improvement route. That to me was the more ideal and healthy ending. It's clear guy #1 wasn't good for Nabi AT ALL and I find it hard to believe that he really changed for her, but at the same time Potato Boy wasn't a good choice either. Yes he is the boyfriend that Nabi deserves but not the one she needs atm. She really needs to stop dating altogether and develop some sense of self worth, make get therapy for her previous traumatic relationship, and then seek someone who will truly value her for who she is and not what someone can get out of her. But instead we got her openly admitting to the second lead that she knows Jae-eon is bad for her and constantly hurts her, but she cant control her feelings for him so she ultimately choose him. I'm gonna be honest, I understand her logic as a girl with no self esteem or worth, but that did not make me any less livid. The last ending scene was the icing on the cake for me. Its just not possible for Jae-eon to do a complete 180 with his behavior because he "loves" Nabi. When he refused the girls advances and numbers, I thought the only reason he did that was because Nabi was around, bit given his track record, I guarantee if Nabi wasn't there he def would've entertained those girls. And that's the gripe I have with the writing the last episode. Jae-eon's "change" towards his relationship with Nabi was horribly done and felt insincere because it wasn't earned. I'm sorry but once a fuc boi always a fuc boi. Guys like Jae-eon don't change, especially for nice naive girls like Nabi. I already wasn't going to rate the drama so high but ep. 16 made me drop my rating even more.

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A classic combination of wuxia and romance!

This wuxia drama is based on the novel by Wen Rui An, and is one of the many TV and movie adaptations. I decided to watch this since I was looking for a wuxia or historical drama after finishing a modern one (Age of Legends), not to mention that the leads here are a treat to watch. I was not disappointed!

What I like:
1) Amazing chemistry between Zhang Han and Janine Chang! I was eagerly looking forward to their scenes together, and looking for video clips of the two.
2) The strong bond/friendship of the four infamous deputies, as they solve cases and fight their enemies together. I also like that there are female deputies in the Shen Hou mansion.
3) Zhang Han as Leng Xue (Cold Blood), Janine Chang as Chu Li Mo and William Chan as Zhui Ming (Chaser) – they are my favorite characters in this drama! Leng Xue, as his name implies, appears cold and uncaring towards others, but is actually a man who cares deeply for the people dear to him. Chu Li Mo is the eldest but unfavored daughter of the government official in her hometown (she grew up with her father and stepmother), who tried to run away from her fate of being one of the emperor's women. She is pretty, smart but can be naive at times. As for Zhui Ming, he is the life of the party, the ladies' man and happy-go-lucky type, but who is also very devoted to his lady love.
4) Yang Yang as Wu Qing (Heartless) – Yang Yang looked so young here, not as manly as Zhang Han, but he was able to carry his role as Wu Qing, a man who looked calm and otherworldly, but was actually very emotional, and struggled to move on from his past love.
5) Mao Ji Jun as Tie Shou (Iron Fist) – he is straight-forward and loyal, but not as strategic as the others.
6) Mickey He as An Shi Geng – A villain you'd love to hate, he was really convincing as a man who becomes mentally unstable and cold-blooded as his thirst for revenge and power consumed him.
7) As this is a wuxia series, it has many fight scenes, and most of them were well-executed. The special effects during the fight scenes in the beginning were a bit over the top, though.
8) Good costume design, hair and makeup, and set design. I like Janine Chang’s look!
9) Although this is mainly a wuxia series with romance, there were also funny/light moments in the drama.
10) The ending was nicely wrapped up, though I would have wanted more sweet scenes between our main couple.

Other comments:
1) Some of the supporting female characters were quite irritating, such as the maids (except Ye Er) and the two sidekicks of Ji Yao Hua.
2) Princess Zi Luo and Ling Yi Yi were annoying in many instances, but I’m glad their characters grew up and were able to eventually redeem themselves.
3) I think there were a bit too many scenes of An Shi Geng reminiscing over his lady love, although I understand it’s meant to show his devotion to her.
4) Since it’s known from the start who the villain is, many of the twists were predictable. Nevertheless, it’s still very engaging and enjoyable to watch.

Final Verdict: I thoroughly enjoyed this, so I would gladly recommend it, especially if you like wuxia with romance!

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Sweeeeeeeeetest Drama

Where Stars Land 

Finished on 11 July 2020

I watched a bollywood mv of this drama on youtube and it looked so sweet that I decided to watch the drama. 

And now I love this drama! (And it's every main character.)

First of all, this is the most sweeeeeeeeeeeetest drama I have ever watched. It is sweet and sad, like sugar with salt of tears. Just wonderful! 

The plot summary above makes it seem like the story of hero and heroine is secondary and the stories of people on the airport are the main concept. Nope. The hero heroine are the main characters of this story, the rest is there to support them. While the story of our hero Lee So Yeon and heroine Han Yoo Ruem goes on constantly, each episode has a new problem at the airport for the employees to work on.

And it doesn't get boring in any way. If only, it makes the drama better.

I have never been to an airport, because I or anyone close to me had never been on a plane. But if I were to start travelling in planes someday, I would understand the people there a little. The lives of people working in airports, I kinda understand them now. 

The heroine, Han Yoo Ruem: She is one of the best kdrama heroine I have ever seen! She did everything I wanted her to do, and nothing I expected of her due to my having watched 50+ kdrama heroines. 

Yes, she is a bit annoying in the first one or two episodes, but she learns quickly. You would understand her reasons later. Give her time. (Though I wish they had shown more of her past.)

She isn't the typical kdrama heroine. She doesn't go around asking annoying questions to hero. She is brilliantly understanding. And I admire and respect her for doing what is right despite all the opposition she gets from people around her. She gives me courage and inspiration.  I wish I was more like her. Braver about speaking my mind and doing what is right no matter what.  

Hero, Lee Seo Yeon: He is a quiet and mature man, exactly the kind of heroes I like to see, and I usually don't see in kdramas. He rarely raises his voice, but can get scary for others pretty quickly with his demeanour. 

Anddddd he really really loves Han Yoo Ruem (Another reason that makes him likable). You can see it in the way he looks at her. The actor, Lee Je Hoon, did a great job of portraying Lee Seo Yeon's emotions. I don't think any other actor could have done justice to this character. A big thank you to whoever selected Lee Je Hoon for this role. (I wonder why we don't see more of such a great actor?) 

He is also not a typical kdrama hero. He is kinda aloof sometimes, but he isn't arrogant. He doesn't have a big ego. If something is in his heart, he doesn't hide it out of embarrassment or something. His smiles are rare, but precious. He almost looks like an anime character. He behaves like one too (the way he moves and talks). 

Sometime before watching this drama, I happened to read a book which had a similar character as Lee Seo Yeon, so that made me sympathise more with him. (Can't mention the book, as it can give away spoilers). I cried a little for him from time to time, and for them both. 

I am gonna give some spoilers here, so please scroll down till you can see 'spoiler ends here' written in capital. 

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My favourite scenes were: 
When heroine asks him if he likes her, and he says yes. I was also expecting him to say no, as most kdrama heroes do. 
When he is going through the hallways of office quickly while covering his arm with his jacket, dodging people. Although this drama had many heartbreaking scenes, this scene was the most heartbreaking one for me. And in the background they were playing, "Someday in your life, walking in different ways. Can someone come and take me to my way." He was trying to go home, and when he couldn't, he tried to hide, to find a place to disappear from people's eyes. 
When he tells her he is breaking. 
Everytime he saves her. 
When he beats up that guy for her. He was feeling guilty and he cried later. But he loved her a lot and I think he was feeling more guilty about not being able to protect her and being by her side. 
When heroine tells him that she would be his arm and leg. My heart melted there. Hero's expressions at that time, mirrored my own. 
When her compass gets stuck to his arm. 
That robot scene was so cuuute, when he almost collides into her while running away from the robot. 
My favourite episode was the one where that philipine foreigner refuses to go because he needs to see his baby. 

So the spoilers end here. 

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Other characters were given a good writing too. 

I particularly liked Oh Dae Gi and Na Yeong Jo's character. They were funny at times. These are two security members who work in a team. Na Yeong Jo is curt and often cold and scary. I wished they showed her past story too. So that we can understand. Oh Dae Gi is a softie totally. This one actor doesnt often show up on our screens too despite the talent. 

Seo In Woo, actor Lee Dong Gun was annoying sometimes. But I understood him by the end. I am glad they showed his side of the story. 

Yang Seo Geon, their team manager, was a good character to see on screen. I wish we say more characters like her. 

The drama dealt with everyone's story. They showed what everyone was like outside the office but they did it inside.

Their Director Kwon, he was an interesting character too. An ambitious man, who exchanged his name for a title. His character told me to never run after titles. Because then you loss your own identity. Now you are somewhere someone or something's director. 

And it's ost! This drama's ost Mystic World is one of the best things about this drama! It suited well for whatever scene they played it for. Mystic World is now in my playlist.  

Admittedly, this drama was not completely realistic, and had some flaws. Like some things were left unexplained. But it still left me with good feelings. There are heart warming stories in it, and there are heartbreaking stories too. I would definitely rewatch it after some time. I loved it. 

Here are some of my favourite quotes: 

"Why is that  important? It could take a person three weeks, three years, or three seconds to suddenly start liking someone." 

Lee Seo Yeon

"We are not much different from these passengers. Just like how they pass through here to get to somewhere, we are here temporarily before we move on. There is no need to attach a meaning to it." 

Said by a worker at airpot on his last day before retirement. This quote made me think a lot. Maybe he was talking about life. 

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Such an Astonishing Story and filled with Excellent Actors and Actresses

This drama is one of the most SUPERB Drama project this 2021 joining The Long Ballad, the story was just amazing, very well balanced and its one of a kind drama (For me:) ).Besides from the good story this drama has their very Superb Actors Starting from the main leads down to the supporting casts, guests and extras they are all really really good all of them played their parts very well, so Salute to the ones that have done the casting.

The story is very balanced, systematically arranged and well spiced. The story may have all the things that you have been looking for, Romance with great chemistry, Friendship, Life, Dreams, About social issues, government and has a little bit of comedy sometimes and many more.
One of the things that I was impressed of this drama was that how every single character developed, and you can see the character progress and how they changed from the 1st episode to the last, just like how Yi Zhi and Li Zi's Character.

I cried for some of the scene but the one that I cried the most was because of the reason that we've lost a lot of really good characters in this drama, their deaths really caught me off-guard, and how I wish that they could have make it to the end of the drama but then well as they say everything happens for a reason and their death made a big part on the story.

If you're wondering if there is a Love triangle I cannot say exactly say its a love triangle but I'll just term it as a Love interest there are people that are going to have interest to them, both ML and FL, but the feelings of ML and FL still remains for each other.

As soon as I have finished the drama I miss them all so much that I went back to the 1st episode and started re-watching it again.
I RECOMMNED this drama so much and If you're thinking if you should watch this or not all I can say is that_ "STOP scrolling and reading comments and spoilers and JUMP-in to the drama NOW and go find it out yourself I promise this drama is WORTH WATCHING." ;-)

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I looked forward to watching this drama because I liked the actors, writer, and singer-song writer. Unfortunately, I wanted to like it more than I did.

Story-The Good
A lot of US shows I’ve watched have a 6 to 2 or 7 to 2 ratio of male to female characters unlike real life. Strong female relationships are often sorely lacking. The writer of OSN has about a 50/50 ratio of male to female characters. The FL has close relationships with her sisters and friends! And surprisingly the mothers aren’t harpies. I found this encouraging and refreshing. I will seek out future dramas by this writer.

The Bad
I have no problem with slow burn romances but someone forgot to turn the crockpot on for this one. As of episode 18 the story was still trying to find traction. I struggled to connect with the FL’s motivation, the ML’s and her ex’s.

The Ugly
The FL had the characteristics of MLs I dislike. She was domineering, selfish, and unsympathetic. Just when she seemed to have some character growth she would revert back. The one time the ML showed vulnerability she pulled back instead of reassuring him and later punished him in a humiliating way. I couldn’t figure out what he saw in her and why he fell so hard when he had been burned badly before. I wanted to feel caught up in their romance but it felt flat to me.

Acting
I was underwhelmed by Han Ji Min and I loved her in Hyde,Jekyll, and Me. And who took the light out of Jung Hae In’s smile and the salt out of his tears? The baddies seemed tired and toothless as if they couldn’t figure out why they were doing what they were doing. Overall the acting wasn’t terrible but I’ve seen several of these actors do a much better job.

OST
As always, I love Rachael Yamagata’s music. However, the music clips often didn’t match the mood of the scene.

Rewatch Value
Not likely. Or maybe one day I’ll try again when I’m in a different mood and it will speak to me. Sadly I don’t think that it will as much as I will want it to.

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Took me forever to find a place to watch this but it was so worth it (viki is the best place to watch it by the way) In the beginning I admit I was extremely confused about what was going on but it wasn't long till things started to make sense so just hang in there. The characters were fantastic in playing their roles and the lady who played Zen in the beginning was absolutely stunning. As for both the child version and older version of Zin, I was blown away by how well they acted out someone who is autistic. plus the combat choreography was superb. Some of the best I've ever seen in an action movie in fact. You never got bored watching the combat scenes because there were always some refreshing new interesting moves being thrown in that kept you on your toes. over all, fantastic movie. I thoroughly enjoyed watching this one.

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