Reviews

A carefully-crafted allegory, about courage to face and overcome seemingly impossible challenges

"Miss King" offers us a charming approach to presenting familiar real-world issues and occurrences, assembled into a serial-drama centered on the game of Shogi, a Japanese chess. But this is not a drama about shogi, even many scenes show us the actual games' moves — enough to make Shogi enthusiasts be excited. Shogi is only used as a central theme of the allegory. We don't really need to understand the game to watch and appreciate it. While many may compare this to the movie "The Queen's Gambit", I don't see anything similar between the two in their stories, although "The Queen's Gambit" might have been used as a thematic inspiration to form the initial idea of "Miss King".

The first thing that stands out from the first few minutes of watching is the top-notch quality of the cinematography as well as the editing and post-production, including the music. This does not have the typical "cheap & quick" serial drama production we have seen too often on mainstream TV. From the beginning of the episode, they give us very artistic, feature-movie-like visual display and creative camerawork without being too "artsy" and pretentious. The production team really put effort down to very conceptual details, even the "MISS KING" title presentation where the pointed warped texts start with the first letter for episode 1, then 2 letters for episode 2, and so on, up until the final episode when the entire letters are warped.

Despite the dramatizations, the story of "Miss King" doesn't go too deep into unnecessary complications and plot twists. The plot stays as simple and straight-forward as possible here, and many of the conversations are on-point and vital to the story. Just like the actual game of shogi (I'd assume), it does have the attack and retreat moments. Even though there are a few repeated patterns here and there, it is still far from becoming "just another shallow & boring story" plaguing many of the now over-saturated TV dramas. Screenwriter/director Yamagishi Santa delivers the most efficient storytelling condensed within the tight and gripping 8 episodes, with a rather short duration per episode. I wished the duration could be a bit longer, like 45 to 50 minutes each. In most episodes, 30 minutes feel like merely 15 minutes. It passes very quickly because the editing is very tight, and shuffling between two scenes is used quite often for thrilling effect. The cinematography is very good at presenting each scene from multiple different angles, sometimes even using extreme close-ups. Re-watching all the episodes is recommended, because we may miss some small details.

The Shogi whereabouts and its entire intrigues in the drama could very much represent the entire showbiz/entertainment industry (be it sports, film, TV, music, etc.), specifically in Japan but also in many other countries throughout the world, which is tainted by corporate greed and the thirst for power. This is what makes "Miss King" a very likely candidate to be the best J-drama for 2025. It has a multilayered meaning. Simple, but deep at the same time. To those of us film enthusiasts who are curious to interpret the allegorical meaning and symbolism beyond the surface-level plot or story line, this is an absolute must-watch because this drama has plenty of them, just like the 2025 movie "Exit 8" (check out my review of "Exit 8" here on MDL 😉).

What is being presented in "Miss King" is not about "selling the dreams/aspirations", but a carefully-crafted fictional allegory. In particular, I have noticed some cautious re-narration (or RENA-rration 😁) of what happened to the acting career of this drama's main lead female actor: Nounen "Non" Rena. — She is the most suitable person in playing the role of the main character Asuka, because they both share the similar flair, brilliance, and also struggles to overcome obstacles in the world that abhors the natural sparks within a person. It seems that whoever came up with the story already had Non in mind to play the role of Asuka when the character was being developed (the character was built around the actor and not vice versa). I'm not going to give any spoilers but just one clue: in the ending scene of Episode 5, it reveals a similar situation to what had actually happened to Non back in 2015.

Again, without attempting to spoil the scenes, there is one important statement said by Todo Seigo (the main/leading supporting character played by Fujiki Naohito): "I'm going to kill the old era", which may explain the "hidden aim" presented in this drama, thanks to Abema TV. His character is displayed as "hot temper" but, at the same time, also "cool-headed", a unique combination that's essential in strategically guiding and refining any person gifted with raw talent and wild/unfocused energy like Asuka.

When we think about "the old era" within the showbiz industry, that refers to the outdated system of hierarchy, controlled by a very few yet highly influential key people at the very top of the pyramid where most of the important decisions are made, in which the entire industry is being run through exploiting the ones at the "bottom of the food-chain": namely all the young and naive talents with high aspirations. These talents are used merely as "assets" that can be exploited, disposed of and replaced at any time. The entire "agency system" provides these assets to do the work in a "binding agreement" so that entertainment commodities can be produced as money-generating tools. In reality, many of these modern-day "slaves" (not owned by landlords, but talent agencies) are more than willing to sacrifice their authenticity, integrity and freedom just for wealth and fame, and in certain cases, even dignity and moral values for a slight chance to move up in the hierarchy. These people then turn to become "monsters" (the term used often in this drama) , despicable creatures who "have made a deal with the devil." As outlined in the first line of this drama's synopsis, it is a "shitty world" indeed. There are also many talented individuals within the industry who actually understand how this system works, but decide to compromise and let themselves remain in the safe "middle ground" by choosing not to excel further, in order to keep themselves at bay, from being attacked by those monsters. They are represented in this drama by the seemingly "pragmatic" Yuna character (played excellently by Narumi Yui), a character many of us here may relate to at some degree. This drama also presents us with the nature of a "binding agreement" or "contract" and its actual significance in controlling the moves of these talents/assets. There's also a seemingly "random" casual joke about plastic surgery popping up in a conversation.

Of course, a drama is a drama, a play. All the dramatizations of the characters and the "larger-than-life" fictional story line are needed so that it is exciting to watch, be it the background stories, the situations, character development, etc. Some of the characters are displayed as serious and very realistic, like for example the Sakai Reiko character (played by Kurashina Kana), and Asuka's mother. The other characters are a bit "comical" to spice up the story, like Todo Seigo, for example, or the variety of "supposedly villain" characters in the Yuki family clan. We can relate ourselves to any of these characters in the "Miss King" story. Certain personality traits being displayed so often by the characters here are: envy, pride, selfishness, rivalry, victim mentality, and lack of self-worth, while on the positive side, goodwill, compassion and empathy also play a significant role in balancing the story so that it does not fall into a toxic negative vibe, where revenge may turn into absolute nihilism. This is a positive drama about courage to face and overcome seemingly impossible challenges. The description of "revenge" here is more about "taking the power back" or "reclaiming what was once lost", and certainly not the "bring everyone who put me down into the pit of hell" type of revenge.

However, I have to disagree with the official synopsis given by Abema TV, that Asuka's "revenge" was fueled by deep hatred (nikushimi / 憎しみ). I don't see that in her character at all. Maybe "rage" (uncontrollable anger) is the more appropriate word to describe what drove Asuka in the first episode, where she began to act impulsively, as opposed to a premeditated plan. Asuka was indeed angry and in pain, but all her anger was more like a "righteous anger" triggered by the world that is full of manipulations and betrayal where she became a victim. Despite being angry and in pain to begin with, Asuka's authentic love for shogi since she was a child (displayed when she smiles during her shogi matches as if she is actually having fun doing it) is the source of her willingness to fight back, and that alone is beautiful to watch! There is a great amount of love being displayed in this drama, even without any romance. As Asuka began to build her trust in the ones who support her unconditionally, she was able to find a way to convert or transmute the energy of anger into creative expression using the platform that she loves, which is shogi. In the real-world, many authentic artists and musicians do that, including I believe Non herself. Speaking of Non, she still has that adorable sparks of energy/aura that has been unique to her ever since she starred in the classic asadora "Amachan", and that energy is incredibly magnetic! 😍

I give "Miss King" a high rating because it is one of the very few J-dramas that has the ability to transform us, if only we're courageous enough to open our hearts. It does not lecture us about virtues or moral values. It is up to us to extract the story, relate ourselves from the characters, and use the allegory as a mirror reflection.

9/10

Read More

Not as confusing as it seams, and brilliant just brilliant

This drama is like an extremely entangled ball of yarn that turns in to a gorgeous sweater.... Okay maybe not but it is probably as entangled as the ball of yarn yet surprisingly easy to follow.

This drama sounded very confusing and to be honest it started of surprisingly light and easy to follow. Portraying loss and sorrow in the most beautiful and honest way. Showing a person trying to keep it together holding up a facade but completely broken inside of longing. Those episodes offered comic relief by introducing some very cheap jokes and annoying side characters. Luckily, they did not take away from the main story. I could have done without them but they are such a small and insignificant part of this drama that I decided not to let them affect my overall impression of it but I will warn you about them here.

As the story progresses, we are invited in to this extremely complicated suspenseful murder mystery romance braking the time space continuum. Showing how complicated time travel really is and how every single persons choices have consequences on both others and both the past and the future.

The female leads characters are extremely well written and executed, it can not have been easy to portray so different characters but the female lead did it in a way that made it easy to see who she was at any given time while allowing character growth and showing a complex range of emotions and thoughts.

The male leads characters where not as complex but showed a verity of emotions and where just the most adorable characters ever making it easy to fall in love with both of them.

The main couple is one of the sweetest and I dare to say healthiest couples I have seen in dramaland and though there is a slight love angel it is not overbearing and is portrayed in a very mature and loving way.

I like that this drama touches important issues such as sexuell harassment, stalking, bullying, homophobia, ableisem, self-hate and self-harm. All are done really well but I would have loved it if they had gotten in deeper in to these issues. I also wish for another season (rare for me seeing I hate extra seasons) where they dig deeper in to some of the side characters. There is one more thing I really want to write about but since I fear it might be a spoiler I have decided to add it as a spoiler tagged comment to this review.

I do not think this dram made me laugh but other than that I experienced a wide range of emotions, it kept me interested threw out the hole drama the twists where very unpredictable and I found myself truly curious about what would happen next as well as how on earth are they going to end this. I am not really sure about how I feel about the ending but it had one, I think I would have preferred another one but this one was okay too.

All in all definitely one of my new favorite dramas.

Read More

CSA (Crime Scene Analysts)

The series is an innovative cerebral type of drama 🎭 on crime scene analysts, while on the job. There is an innovative element of storytelling in each scene in this white collar crime investigative enforcement series, as the mystery unravels on the the stoic portrayals of crime scene analysts (CSA). The drama depicts intuitive human side on corporate espionage on trade secrets and the capture of concealments on the inevitable villainous culprits thickening the plot lines. Unique drama 🎭 Great Watch 🏆for those who prefer attentive watching of dialogues and the intently placed clues in each scene containing the episodic revelations.

Read More

Hilarious In First Half, Lost In Second Half

Final verdict 7/10.

This show compiled is 5 hours and 20 minutes long and yet it feels RUSHED, especially at the end where they kept throwing stuff at you in a blink and you miss something major happening way. A bunch of things happen off screen (I assume, maybe I blinked 🤣 ) near the end as well as they jump from one plot change to another.

The overall story they are TRYING to tell isn't bad, it's actually pretty good, the issue comes that there is no sense of world building or what the rules of the world are so you feel lost.

The villians.... existed. They were part of that whole "this could have been better more fleshed out" feeling as we get 3 of them in the show. The 1st and "main" one I feel like they "tried" to give us a story but I have no idea what it was other than wanting to live forever and not forget anything, I "think"? His disciple... Idk what his story was or why he didn't die when he was supposed to, maybe he did and I blinked? The last and 3rd one, the masked person, made the "most" sense but also was severely glossed over on how they were able to get away with the things they got away with 🤣.

The 2nd couple was adorable. Again, I didn't 100% understand everything with them at the end but they were still a really good side couple that was surprising fleshed out for how few scenes they had being 2nd and all.

Our main couple though.... 🤣 They were 100% where it was at during the 1st half of the show. Rolling on the floor laughing antics during one of the storylines. And a couple scenes to make you blush during that time too 🤣

Later though their story kinda goes off the rails and you start talking to the screen about things like "just write a diary!" and "where's that journal?" and "seriously???? You're just going to stand there and not at least try and run?"

For a full and complete breakdown of rating the show...

7/10 - eps 1-3
10/10 - eps 4-12
8/10 - eps 13-18(eps 14 6/10 for editing confusion)
5/10 - eps 19-25

Read More

Story: I watch this just because i want to see the MIR casts get together again. I am not expecting anything for this story so it was okay for me. The story is kind of simple; a boy waiting to meet his online girlfriend for a first time and while waiting, he meet his friends. That's all. All four episodes are full with fun things that happen in 13 hours time. What make me really frustrated is even the boy waited for the girl for 13 hours, she still doesn't show till the end. We don't know who is the girl except for the hint she maybe is a model/ actress at the end. But its okay because this is only for commercial/ promoting AIS Calling Melody so i satisfied with this story.

Cast: All four MCs(Peak, Boom, Ohm and Toey) in MIR are all together so its make me really excited even the story is nonsense. Although all of them playing new characters, seeing Peak as Pao remind me of Fuse. Pao character in this story is kinda similar to Fuse; soft, kind and innocent person. He still waiting for the girl to show even though the girl keep delaying the meeting till the end. For all the acting, i have nothing to complain because they all are great. I just enjoy watching them whatever it is.

Overall: Siam 13 Hours is great to watch IF you only want to see MIR casts unite again but if you were expecting something more for the story, then it is NOT worth it.

Read More

Has it's bad and good sides to it

For starters, this drama is very unique and different from reality shows that I have seen. I really like the overall theme of finding love and seeing if that person will accept you based on your dark secret. I have never seen a reality show ever that has the same theme as this which made me enjoy the drama. But-

I really hated the hosts specifically the male host. They made so many insensitive jokes to people throughout the drama which anger you. At first, it wasn't bad but it gets worse throughout the nine episodes.

The double standards of slut-shaming women even though a man did a similar thing and isn't called a slut is ridiculous. They made tons of transphobic jokes and rape jokes. They just in general have many insensitive jokes which I don't find funny. Unbelievable even. Mainly, I skipped every part with the hosts because it was painful to watch their insensitive jokes every two seconds.

Another thing that I also didn't like is that they kept a wardrobe malfunction in the beginning, they could have edited it out. It just made me uncomfortable seeing how they treated the women throughout the series. It's honestly sickening and disgusting,

Would I recommend this? Probably not. Would I rewatch this? Probably not. Is it worth your time? If you get past the insensitive jokes and how annoying the hosts are maybe you can enjoy it. Plus the revealing of the secrets makes things interesting.

Read More

Something refreshing and unique – a must watch!

“Lovestruck in the City” brings some fresh energy into the world of K-Dramas. The story follows the love life of six people, who participate in a show where they get asked several questions regarding their view of love and their love life. Their stories are visualised with throwbacks till the drama reaches the point where the actions actually take part in the presence.

The format of the drama may seem a bit odd at the beginning or may even scare off from continuing watching. It is in an interview format, which I personally normally don't like. But they managed to really make something good out of it, which is super fun to watch and not even a bit weird or annoying. I really did enjoy it and since it is something different from all the other dramas out there, it felt like something fresh. The characters actions are understandable most of the time. I feel like they all struggle with things a lot of people can relate to in one way or another. The drama did a really nice job in showing those feelings. I also really liked the friendship between Kang Gun, Rin Yi and Eun Oh. Who doesn't want a friendship like that?

I won't go into too much detail when it comes to the actors, because I think they all did a great job. Ji Chang Wook did a excellent job in portraying Park Jae Won and I personally really loved the role of Ryu Kyung Soo as Kang Gun. I haven't seen many characters like Kang Gun or Oh Sun Young in other dramas. In general, seeing the different characters of each was very interesting because they are all so different.

The soundtrack of the drama is excellent. I have been watching the drama while it was ongoing, and was desperately waiting for the soundtrack titles to be released. The choice of the songs in each scenes is really good and there was not one time I thought it was not matching the scene and feelings.

The last episode showed a bit more of the support role portrayed by Choi Min Ho. It was interesting, but I wished they had shown a bit more of the main characters in the last episode. There are some things that I feel are not yet figured out in their stories, so I was a bit confused. It may be they wanted to introduce the side character in order to make a second season – which I hope they will do.

“Lovestruck in the City” offers you something fresh, interesting characters, some laughter and a lot of joy if you are willed to give it a try and not let yourself be scared off of the format or the bad comments about it you might have read! Must watch for me and I will definitely re-watch!

Read More

Tan Song Yun and Three Labradors Made It Passed the NRTA Review

I titled my review above because I swear there is a supernatural element in this movie (will give some examples). And if you watch a lot of Chinese shows you know that NRTA (Chinese censorship agency) banned modern shows with supernatural themes and deemed it as superstitious. But the cute actress and her cute labradors (yes there are three of them) were able to wring the hearts and tears of the NRTA reviewers and viewers alike.

STORY:

The movie is based on a novel titled "Dad is a 'Dog'" written by Wang Xiao Lie. The story is simple, and the synopsis provided on MDL tells the whole plot. The native title is Good Bye, Li Ke Le (再见，李可乐). Li Ke Le is the name of the pup, so we know in the end the female lead Li Yan (Tan Song Yun) loses her dog. So no surprises here. But it is a beautiful movie about mother and daughter's mended relationship past the death of the head of the family. How to let go of regrets and attachments after pain? How to learn love and courage while growing up? When the difficulties of the past reappear, will they have a regret-free choice in their lives?

Now I want to explain why I think this drama contains a supernatural element, in which Ke Le is the incarnation of Li Yan's dad. On the day Li Yan and Mom went back from the hospital after Dad passed away, Ke Le showed up and was adamant about being adopted into the family. Ke Le's habits mimic Dad's habits, including drinking soda (although the dog definitely cannot drink soda). That's why it was named Ke Le, since 可乐 means soda. The English sub called the dog Coke or Cola. And Ke Le knows some Dad's secrets, too.

ACTING/CHARACTER:

The acting of Tan So Yun and veteran actress Yan Ni (who played Li Yan's mom) portraying the estranged relationship between mother and daughter is worth watching by itself. But the three Labradors who played Kele ought to have their introduction as well. Xiao Ke Le is the young pup who becomes Li Yan's companion during her mourning period. Ping An is the adult Ke Le. The dog also showed up in the 2023 drama "A Date With the Future". The adult Ke Le oversees the grown-up Li Yan, including her choice of a special friend who will be her future husband, and also accompanies Mom when Li Yan leaves the house to attend university. And lastly, the elderly Ke Le is played by Xiao Qi, who gives away Li Yan during her wedding.

DIRECTING/EDITING:

Kudo to the director and the editor who managed to execute a life story of Li Yan from teenager to adulthood, and of Ke Le from puppy to end of its life. There is not much dialogue as we see in dramas, but the actors and the actresses use a lot of facial expressions only well-experienced ones can show. All three dogs definitely are well-trained and able to act, including showing their facial expressions (especially Xiao Qi with its sad look).

And guess what? Wang Xiao Lie, the novel author, is also the director of this movie.

VISUALS:

I love the filming set in a small town. Wang Xiao Lie, besides being a director, is also a photographer. Thus we were able to see the simple yet beautiful cinematography captured in this movie.

OST:
The main theme is "We Have a Deal" by Diamond Zhang/Zhang Bi Chen

ENDING: (Scroll down, skip if don't want to be spoiled)
























Li Yan and Mom mended their relationship. Li Yan married her high school sweetheart Zhang Huai Jun (Jiang Long), but as usual Chinese shows, they don't date in high school but later in the university. Mom gets a new man, Uncle Zhang Ping. As for Li Ke Le, he becomes elderly, gets a brain tumor and the family has to put him to sleep. The movie ends with Li Yan snowboarding again. Dad and Ke Le are watching her from the hilltop, smiling.

Read More

The Best M/M Reality Dating Series So Far

Overall: This is my favorite "reality"dating series I've seen, understanding that "reality" can include producers telling the guys what to do/say and that editing can be extremely misleading (not showing things, change the order, etc). My goals were that the guys have some fun and being on the show helps (or at least doesn't hurt them) in their personal and professional lives. Note to Eun Chan and Chan Kyu - don't change yourselves, you are amazing as you are! Series aired on both Gagaoolala & iQIYI.

Content Warnings: discussion of homophobia

What I Liked
- the interviews and them discussing more serious things in episode 7 was excellent
- I like how they actually started with a date. The 30 second phone thing/letter writing was a good idea but only once.
- mix of choice vs no choice things
- smart decision to not let them say their age or occupation right away. I think people get fixated on those things when in reality personality, values and goals are much more important compatibility-wise.
- production value such as nice music, set design, editing, etc

Room For Improvement
- they needed more group dates or getting to know you games (Never Have I Ever would have been fun)
- the second phone call was repetitive and boring, it took almost all of episode 5
- the varying lengths of episodes (37 minutes to over an hour) was bad because then viewers thought some episodes were being censored. In the future they should keep episodes a consistent length.
- either there was a rule for no skinship or they edited it out, because 8 guys lived together for 1 week...
- the illegible subs on Gagaoolala because Korean subs were hardcoded on the video

Comparison to other m/m dating shows
1. Bromance (Thailand) is also on Gagaoolala. This is the typical Bachelor/Bachelorette set up with a bunch of people competing against one another to be with the 1 bachelor. I didn't like this because they could have all been hitting on each other and we have multiple couples! I got kind of bored and skipped a bunch.
2. Love House seasons 1 & 2 (Vietnam) on YouTube (most have English subs, this is ep 1 of season 2 no subs though https://youtu.be/TKzT_nHfVTA ). I liked this set up more than Bromance because the guys could all pursue one another. I didn't like the "secret couple" aspect and dividing them up based on sexual position seemed odd (can't they discuss that in private???) Season 1 was also the most brutal "rose ceremony" I've ever seen in any dating reality show. Season 2 was better.

Read More

Miles ahead of season 1, much more interesting and hot

I was not sold on season 1, when i watched i thought Yu Mi was a pitiful character that only cared about men's approval. this couldn't have been further from the truth, i realised as i was watching. She undergoes an amazing character development and she gets you to root for her with all your heart.

Story
her personal story is tied with her relationships. i didn't care for woong last season, but i'm glad i gave it anothe rechance, cause in this one she gets together with Babi and they have a mature, loving relationship full of respect and trust. i loved their romantic moments as well as Babi's unwavering support of Yumi' s dreams that helped her be a writer.

overall
it was a delight. i never thought i'd be so invested in a female lead with such a bad haircut, but kim yu mi won me over with her spark and personality

Read More

An Epic Historical Drama

KING'S WAR (Legend of Chu and Han// Chu Han Chuan Qi) was a fantastic C-drama series from the makers of the "Three Kingdoms". Like it's predecessor, it was epic, brutal, historical, romantic and full of complicated story lines and an amazing cast of characters. If you are unfamiliar with the era or with Chinese historical dramas, you might be a bit confused going into this series, so I'd recommend freshening up on Chinese history beforehand.

King's War was inspired by the historical events in the Chu-Han Contention, an interregnum between the fall of the Qin Dynasty and the founding of the Han Dynasty. This series is very interesting because of its usage of the word "legend" in its title "Legend of Chu and Han", which belies some of the events are part of ancient legend and folklore rather than only the facts. I found it to be really well made drama regardless.

This series had a huge budget and it really shows in its realistic sets and landscapes, in the costumes, acting and story. The series spans an amazing length of 80 episodes and all are so well done. After binge watching this series I now feel compelled to rewatch Three Kingdoms.

This was an amazing watch and full of drama, adventure, intrigue, battle, and a little romance. The cast was extraordinary, especially Lui Bang (Chen Daoming) who played his role fantastically. Everything was beautiful. Just an amazingly well made production. Loved it.

Read More

A MUST WATCH.

I got hooked since episode 1 and I cannot stop watching. It exceeded my expectations tbh. It has definitely been added to my all time favorite series. This is the kind of drama that no matter how many times you have watched it, you will still be entertained. The story telling, cinematography and casts, everything is just amazing. I love the chemistry between the leads. Acting wise? Dang! It was superb! Even the child actors are really great and deserves an award. It was not awkward at all, it was soooo natural.

Rewatch value? If I can give a rating higher than 10, I will gladly do so. After I finished writing this review, I will go back again to watch the drama.

Story wise - we all know that this is an adaptation from a manga however it amazes me how they incorporate the chinese culture within the series.


Over all, this made my 2020 complete. Yes, it may feel like you are watching a BL drama however for me, it shows us that the chemistry between all the characters are top-notch. It felt like you are watching your neighbor doing something, it felt like you are in their world bcos their acting was phenomenal. It also gave us life lessons about our dreams in life - no matter how hard it is,there will always be someone who will support us. And as long as you have faith and determination, you can do it!!!

Read More

Entertaining comedy-action heist movie!

I never really have high expectations for this movie when I decided to watch. I know that there would be awesome casts and that the movie’s highly awaited, seeing how it’s promoted here and there (on Jessi Show and Running Man). So, why not watch it?

This movie begins with Dong Gu, a tomb raider who has a revenge on “someone” (so it wouldn’t be much of a spoiler) after burying him when he was little and his dad alive. He eventually forms a troop of his own (everyone with different specialties) to fulfill the main mission (which is to steal a Joseon King’s original sword located in a fully secured tomb.

This movie is incredibly funny. Unlike The Thieves which focuses mainly on spy things, like climbing buildings or hacking systems, which could be so boring so predictable so illogically impossible, Collectors focuses more on the “planning” which is waaay more interesting in my opinion. Added with the right amount of real funny comedy, and NO betrayals, this is definitely my favorite Korean heist movie! Although the storyline is pretty much simple, even the ending was so simple, but it was yet again, unpredictable, topped with a comedic plot twist, this movie is SURPRISINGLY very good!

Jo Woo Jin and Im Won Hee’s character were my favorite characters. Super duper funny acting, not over the top, just the perfect amount of comedy. Shin Hye Sun’s character a total baddie, and judging by the ending... ⚠️ SPOILER: there’s a possibility of a season 2 where Shin Hye Sun would be helping Dong Goo and his team. ⚠️

Overall, an entertaining movie I would like to recommend all of you. No serious conflicts, no pointless fighting scenes, just pure teamwork and happy endings! A 9/10 for me! Definitely recommended! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Read More

When 2007 Kdrama Vibes Meet 2025

Honestly, this kdrama was both cute and enjoyable to follow, offering a rather light form of entertainment. At the same time, it attempted to touch on weightier themes such as sexual exploitation in the entertainment industry, systemic corruption, and the challenges faced by older professionals who often find themselves sidelined despite once having a brilliant career. However, these topics were only superficially addressed, most likely because the drama had too few episodes to properly explore them while juggling multiple subplots.

One of the highlights was seeing veteran actors in a project of this nature. Their experience brought a certain maturity to the performances, but what stood out most was the sense of ease and enjoyment they radiated. The BTS footage included in the finale underscored this, but even on screen their performances carried a lightness that suggested they were not only working but genuinely HAVING FUN.

The chemistry between Uhm Jung Hwa and Song Seung Heon deserves special mention. Their interactions felt organic and fluid, making the relationship between Lim Se Ra and Detective Dokgo Cheol both believable and touching. Even with the 25 year gap during which the characters had not seen each other, the drama managed to convincingly convey the affection and admiration they still held for one another after all this time (and through all this time).

As for the storyline, it was consistently engaging, though not without its flaws. I was surprised to see some viewers raising questions that had already been addressed early on (for example, whether the protagonist had lost her memory for 25 years... When the first two episodes had clearly established that it was her second accident). Such oversights show that while the drama doesn't demand intense attention, it does reward viewers who follow closely.

As a whole, My Troublesome Star works well as entertainment and carries a nostalgic tone reminiscent of the kdramas of the late 2000s. However, it should be noted that this "old-school" vibe also brings with it certain drawbacks. The drama reproduces outdated stereotypes that feel out of place in today's landscape, such as presenting curly hair and darker skin tones negatively. While these choices may reflect cultural attitudes still prevalent in Korean Society, they remain disappointing, especially when other global industries have moved forward in challenging such portrayals.

In conclusion, My Troublesome Star is far from flawless, but it offers a charming, nostalgic experience for viewers who long for the feel of 2007–2010 kdramas. What the narrative lacks is more than compensated for by uniformly strong performances, with both veterans and newcomers leaving a mark.

Rating: 7.5/10 – recommended.

Read More