Reviews

The best version of Boys Over Flowers

I usually don't write reviews but I had to this time. I have watched all the versions of BOF and for me, this Thailand version is the best. I loved how the story was modernized and effortless. Compared to the other versions I liked how the ML was humanized in this version. I also loved the pace of the story and how well it progressed. The chemistry between Thyme and Gorya was amazing. The friendship between F4 members was strong and we could feel a strong connection between them which I felt was lacking in other versions. Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this version and also its amazing OST's.

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Wow, after two years of this drama being on my plan to watch list, I finally watched it. It took so long because I was too lazy to find a place to watch it. I loved this drama so much because it was so fun, hilarious and addicting. I can honestly say I never got bored watching it because it didn't drag at all and it was so unpredictable that my eyes were glued to the screen. The plot was very unique because it wasn't a cliche romance drama, a revenge or something that made me want to rip my hair out of my scalp.

The love in this drama between each of the characters especially my baby Ha Seon was so sincere that I never got tired of the situation life threw at each of them. The best thing about this drama was it made me laugh or warmed my heart through each episode. The chemistry was there for each of the characters even though the show was not like your regular romcom because it didn't focus on sexual desire but pure love. Also the male actors were so handsome that I wish I was Eugene throughout the show. I definetly recommended it for all to watch.

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Fight, Suffer, and Fight Again

Japan always delivers when it comes to making characters diverse—and that goes for both women and men. Every guy is unique, standing out with his own clothing style, hairstyle, hair length or color, and even tattoos. However, when it comes to the plot, the logic is definitely lacking.

I understand this is a school drama and nobody expects to see actual classes, but at times it feels like the school exists solely as a place for fights. Shimura is supposedly struggling financially and saving money wherever he can, yet he casually skips work, somehow always has food to eat, and still manages to pay his mother's bills.

The romance line also raises a ton of questions. Out of nowhere, Asamiya asks Shimura on a date, cries when he gets beaten up, and worries constantly... But when did she even develop these feelings? How did they get close? Shimura can disappear for a whole month without a single word. Another time, he shows up at her workplace only to be told, "She quit a month ago". So they don't talk for months at a time? Maybe I missed something?

And Rumi's story is a bit strange, too. It's okay for an underage schoolgirl to climb the career ladder through sex, but drinking alcohol, as her client told her, is a big no-no. Oh yeah, sure...

I was expecting a story about a weak guy gradually getting stronger, learning how to fight, and pushing past his limits. But a few episodes in, it feels like his only "growth" is just being able to take a beating for longer. You can barely call his match wins actual victories—it's more like the villain just got exhausted from punching a nice guy and lost.

I haven't read the manhwa or watched the anime, and maybe (actually, I'm pretty sure) the story is fleshed out a lot better there. Overall, though, it's a cool, fast-paced J-drama.

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I was excited to see another Bai Lu drama, but to me this drama didn't meet my expectation. Was hoping it would be a cute story but this drama just packed too much. I got a little lost watching it at the end. I felt this drama was kinda choppy in it's plot development...

Let me try to summarize it.... Male lead is from the Upper Jiu Liu ( aka upper class person) He has a clothing business.
Female lead is of the lower Jiu liu ( from the lower class) where she is the leader in the Dragon Bamboo sect. Two people from two classes come together to solve a case of missing gold thread from the male lead 's store/factory. ( Many episodes were about this case , which i didn't find particularly interesting). The female lead gets to stay at the store to unravel what has happen .Beside the Dragon bamboo clan there is a snake clan , who does evil and try to inflate the silkworm. They were also behind the missing golden thread. After the case is solve, the female lead is there in the shop as a designer, and help design different thing likes bras and pillows to sell to the public. In their shop there is the second female lead who has an evil father. The evil father basically tries to kill the male and female lead because they know of his evil and deceptive ways. He gets saved because , he actually has another identity, he's a crown prince. Just like that the story turns and he moves Chang An.

There is also a mystery behind the female lead's identity, but the big reveal was just kinda confusing and like wth ? it took way too long for her to solve the case/find out why someone killed her master. she goes into the royal palace and tries to find more , but she doesnt really find much information.

Also the female lead is suppose to be a leader of the dragon bamboo clan , but i didnt find that she had the characteristic traits that fit. I mean she is a little loud, rough , brave and can drink but she doesnt know martial arts , so she cant protect herself, while on the other hand the male lead who is from the upper class and is much more tamer knows martial arts and kicks butt!!!

The female and male lead pairing didnt work. I didnt feel like they had chemistry at all. Like it took so long for the female lead to figure out she liked the male lead. The male lead was a little too stone cold face lol, but he was cute when he smiled. I felt she had more chemstry with the second male lead. They didnt have enough screen time to build that relationship up, maybe one incident, but afterwards nothing so it was left to dry lol ( dont know if you know what i mean) So if you are looking for romance, this is not the drama for you !

I think they gave a little too much time in showing the relationship between the second male and female lead. I didnt like the fact that he turned evil, but at the end had such a wth ending.... ( dont wanna ruin it all) Also the evil father has an evil daughter.... Didn't like her either, a lu cha biao!! green tea b....

What i liked was the relationship between the female and male lead's servants. Their story was pretty cute!! They ended up falling for each other.

I mean this drama is bearable, watch at your own warning! hehe

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Started out SO good, but left me disappointed in the end

Final edit now that I finished the show.

A couple things ruined it for me:

- The moment Nan Chu became famous. It changed the whole show, I didn't like it, and I felt like her character changed all of a sudden. We knew her as a rational, level-headed girl, and suddenly she was oh so willing to go against everyone's advice to enjoy her dating life. What do you mean you didn't expect the papps to follow you to the funeral, girly you're a star now (though even that felt weird)

- Da Gang's death?? It felt unnecessary and weird, I don't know why they added that

- The ambiguous ending. You can try to reason with me all you want, but unfortunately, and against my own best wishes, I also believe that the male lead died, and I HATE it. Don't watch the last 15 minutes, they're confusing lol.

Overall, the show was good, although the last 14 episodes felt like a completely different story to be honest. Some episodes felt tedious to finish, and I felt weirdly disconnected to it, which is a shame because I loved the first 26 episodes. Certain plots were either brought back (the annoying senior actor and the starlet), or introduced (Nan Chu's parent's love story) that I simply didn't care for. I found myself skipping half episodes to get to the point simply because they felt like fillers. From the beginning, I was "eh" about the 40 episodes total, and after finishing the show I can say that it dragged in the last episodes. It did not need that many, and I would have preferred a clearer ending. Either he is dead, or not. Not something that can be both or just the one, based on your own interpretation, especially in a show like this where it's literally between either life or death. A clear cut would have been better.

I was about to give the show 7/7.5 stars to be honest because of the things I didn't like that ruined it for me. Sudden stardom and a weird character development, unnecessary plotlines and the ending just kinda left me disappointed. The actors did such a good job, and I will definitely pick up another Huang Jing Yu drama because his acting was especially great in emotional scenes. The romance was perfect for me when Nan Chu and Lin Lu Xiao just started getting to know each other and slowly developed a mature relationship. I also really liked the comradeship between the firefighters, they really felt like family. The last two episodes and the episode with the banquet fire (30, I believe) sort of made me give the drama very weak 8/10 stars - it did manage to pull my heartstrings one final time.

(edit: changed the rating to 9/10 because I am in L O V E).
(edit updated to episode 26: I still love everything about the leads and their relationship. It's mature and sweet, both are very confident in their partner and support each other wonderfully (be it emotionally or regarding their careers). This has to be one of my favorite romances in a while, it brings me so much joy to watch Nan Chu and Lin Lu Xiao together, the way he softens when she's around him is just absolute madness! Now, we have gotten a lot of conflict within the station in the last couple of episodes, and I'm excited to see where this will be going, and how this will be resolved, since we have 15 episodes left. Overall, this show makes me incredibly happy, and waiting for new episodes is both exciting and excruciating. I'll be going away for a little while, can't wait to find weird ways to download the episodes so that I can still catch up with everyone because reading your comments is really fun! 🥹👍🏻 AnywhO, I hope those who abandoned the show too early, or who were unsure whether or not they should start it, give it a second thought. Under all the firefighting (propaganda), you do get a mature romance and nice bromance and relationships between the characters; it's a very heartwarming show so far!).

I'm giving this an 8/10 for now but I am in love with this show. The first episode was already extremely impressive for me, the cinematography did not disappoint. I don't quite know how they filmed these burning buildings etc., but it looks so real!

I already love the female lead and male lead; their chemistry is so good despite them not having too many scenes with each other just yet. I like how they are both very mature and serious without being boring. You can see in the female lead that she is a strong-willed and hardworking young woman, and I love the actress so much for that. She was already really great in >Lighter and Princess<, and she proves herself as a capable actress again. Zhang Jing Yi is such a natural actress, she becomes the character with ease and makes me believe every single word she says! Huang Jing Yu plays his character very well as well. The way he is able to have a gentle, dreamy expression when he looks at the female lead (not always, but sometimes homeboy is entranced by her, can't blame him!) compared to the other two actresses (within the show, actresses playing actresses ha!) is just *chef's kiss*. But then, he is also the capable firefighter, who saves lives and lectures his disciples! Yet you can see that he cares deeply about his people and job.


I like the music a lot too, it's very fitting in every scene and emphasizes the emotions of the characters very well.

So far, the romance is very little, but very good. We get sweet little moments between the leads that got me kicking my feet and giggling, but I'm excited to see it develop into something more serious and solidified.

Now, this is a firefighter drama, so it does feel like propaganda.... but they kinda got me here. The comradeship and bromances between the firemen are actually really cute lowkey lmao.

I'm excited to continue the show, but for now it's a yes and thumbs up for me🥹👍🏻

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This drama was so disappointing I'm writing my first review (spoilers ahead).

First of all, it didn't hook me in like most other dramas do, I couldn't watch more than one episode at a time (which is saying something). The first half was decent, but then I got really impatient and would watch half an episode and finish the next day because I got bored (and slightly annoyed at the lead's breathing, feels like he breathes more than he talks - yes, it can be effective, but it was over used).

Cast is fine, acting on the whole is pretty good, music is fantastic (have yet to watch a drama with bad music). The story has an interesting premise, but it lacks/fails in the delivery.

(Spoilers!)
I have issues with the premise that people who commit suicide never make it to heaven (which could just be the 'religion' of the show but that stems from very real stigma) and dissipate. And if that means they never get reborn, how is Kang Pil Sung meeting Hong Seo Jung at the end? (Cheesy.) I thought the souls Hwang Dae Du absorbed wouldn't go to heaven either? Did that change?

Hwang Dae Du apparently has OCD because it's convenient to the story line (except when it's not). If he truly had OCD, you would see his "compulsions [as] repetitive behaviors that [he] feel[s] driven to perform." But you don't. He's kind of 'obsessed' with Kang Pil Sung, and the answer as to why in the last episode is pretty unsatisfying/lame. His whole 'theory' he's out to prove that demons are made, not born, isn't showing at all. He taunts Kang Pil Sung "look at what you've become" and I just "???" I don't see it, until the last episode (briefly), which is too little too late.

There's no telling how or why Hwang Dae Du attains the powers that he does. Yes he swallows a few souls at the beginning (yes the shaman has powers), but after that? On top of getting a few psychic glimpses he can now move & break things? Immobilize & control people? Huh?? There's no explanation for any of his powers, they just show up, 'cause I guess that's cool?

Not to mention, if the whole world is going to hell (because the door is open), how the hell is that not sensed from the island? I can accept Hong Seo Jung doesn't feel Hwang Dae Du because of salt or whatever, but HELL itself? Engulfing the world? A few episodes ago it was made clear the effects were worldwide, so why would this tiny island be exempt??

Towards the end... well, I was surprised (at first) when people got killed, but when new characters were introduced I had an idea of what would happen, and then it did, no surprise. Was there a point to all the deaths? Meh. Later, the girl's rushed to the hospital, "any later and she could've died" from WHAT? Being knocked out? Poisoned? We'll never know! And to top it off, Kang Pil Sung is the suspect of SEVEN murders?? HOW? They literally have video of the other dude TWICE? Details, I guess, but as a writer, I can't let those slide. I don't mind dark/bittersweet/unhappy endings but they have to be done well, and it wasn't. :|

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Just when detective dramas seem to have grown stale, stuck in that that episodic rut so many fall prey to, Japan manages to produce something fresh in a favorite genre. The Long Goodbye, based on the famous Raymond Chandler novel of the same name, might be just this aforementioned something. Part period piece, film noir, and clever adaptation, this miniseries may leave you more satisfied than its five hours might suggest.

The Long Goodbye covers just one case in full, taking place in the early 1950’s. We swap the original location of Los Angeles in the United States for Japan in the same era. This injection of the downtrodden post-war atmosphere throws its shades on the theme and plot. What results is a wholly unique spin on a drama otherwise reminiscent of classic detective noirs popular so long ago in Hollywood. “Shiritsu tantai (private detective)” Masuzawa Banji replaces iconic Phillip Marlowe in this short and sweet adaptation; just like Marlowe did, Masuzawa encounters an unforgettable friend he feels he must protect—then eventually vindicate in the eyes of the public. Our mystery is one fraught with murder, twisted love, and poisonous wealth, filled to the brim with refreshing twists and turns, strewn with clues for the viewer to notice. Nothing is what it seems, and most things are more complicated than first glance.

Something else of note is the excellent narrator, doubtlessly kept over from the source material: he has a wonderfully cheeky style, and often brings much-needed humor to The Long Goodbye when heard.

Asano Tadanobu is a consummate actor, best known for his excellent work in film. Being able to see him on screen for any extended amount of time has been a rare pleasure. As Masuzawa, Asano-san brings an excellent physical performance to the table, using body language to tell what the character cannot. He is a silent type as these detectives tend to be, yet also displays a wonderfully amusing attitude from time to type. Whenever Masuzawa would become fed up with a situation, that scene was golden. Other honorable mentions go to Kato Koyuki, our resident sultry enigma played with style and pathos, and Ayano Go as friend-in-need Tamotsu. His tears won’t soon be forgotten; what a wonderful display of vulnerability in such a relatively short appearance.

Musically, The Long Goodbye offers nothing I would listen to again. But for its purpose, building the atmosphere and tone of the drama, it’s perfect. Like the narrative style and cinematography, a classic approach is taken with the soundtrack. Everything gushes with dark, jazzy color—just like an old-timey film. Of everything one can hear in this drama, the theme song will be most memorable. As I type this out, I can still hear it playing in the back of my mind.

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A sweet summer ride with a dash of drama!

7.7/10

Positives :
✅ All the cast members were sweet, supportive and adorable. There wasn’t a single "extremely problem child" in the bunch, which made the overall atmosphere and vibe genuinely heartwarming.

✅ For me this was a unique and refreshing concept. The idea of living together to find a BL partner for a drama role was completely new to me and I really enjoyed it. It felt like a fresh twist on the usual reality show format.

✅ The panelists "The Aunty Squad" were over-the-top in the best way. They were funny, dramatic and very engaging throughout. Their silly commentary here and there added an extra layer of entertainment to the episodes.

Negatives:
❌ I did not enjoy over-the-Top drama towards the end. While the first 10 episodes felt genuine, the drama and sudden twists in the final two episodes came off as a bit too much. It somewhat disrupted the otherwise vibe of the show.

❌ I think I would have enjoyed this more if it had been an 8 or 10-episode series. Some parts felt a bit slow and dragged on.

❌ Now this might just be my problem but Poom deserved more panel love. It often felt like the panel forgot about Poom, especially when he was waiting for translations in the early 5-6 episodes. I wish they had given him a few extra seconds to catch up. It occasionally felt like he was watching the show alone. That said, it was nice to see him interact more with the squad by the end.

Overall, this was a creative and enjoyable ride for the most parts with likable casts and a fresh concept. Despite a slightly rocky finish, the journey was full of warm moments and making it worth a one time watch.

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this is one of those slow burners, and they just talk, there's no action or thriller (totally different from what I thought it'd be)... but still I was never bored, their dialog was smooth and natural that I enjoyed listening to them.. overall, it was a feel good movie about humanity and trust?

Kim Hyang Gi was really amazing, she acted with her whole body, there was a scene where she had her feet tilted and her toes were moving, I mean, it was not the focus in your face "oh look she's being autistic" but like she was deep in her role just unconscionably moving?...

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How do i go about describing this movie. Well the first reason why i started watching it was because it was about soccer and unfortunately there aren't many soccer movies or dramas out there. What i got in return was a package deal. This movie has both drama and soccer in it. Now the story isn't the best but it did make me laugh, and it did make me cry. The cast was pretty good(and hey, it has a bunch of East Timorian kids in it!). The music wasn't anything special, but it served it's purpose. As for rewatch value, not much in my opinion. Overall though, this is a decent soccer and drama flick that'll make you laugh and cry at points of the movie.

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I thought that I would really like this drama, because it had this super girly, rom-com type feel to it at first, slightly reminiscent of Boys Over Flowers, with the two new hot guys instantly gaining popularity at school, however, I found that the plot was unsatisfying, and the dialouge and acting were a bit overdone, and over dramatic. It was quite obnoxious. The female lead can't make up her mind between two guys, and then she goes after one, then changes her mind over and over. Her fickleness was probably what started the flame in the burning runaway bus that I call this drama.

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He is Psychometric was not a drama that was on my radar, but I saw an OST video and decided that I needed to watch it. It was a rather impulsive watch and I have absolutely no regrets. I did a true binge-watch of it and ate it up in 3 evenings.

The tragic beginning to the story and then the slowly unraveled tragic history/background really grabbed me. The drama had me wanting to know what happened next as well as wanting to uncover their pasts with all the details as quickly as possible.

The drama was relatively predictable for me, but it was so fast paced and heartbreaking that I didn't care.

Both MCs were likable, though they felt very young (not in a bad way). They were so full of energy, drive, and motivation. I liked the layout of the story in how they were introduced with the initial tragedy that starts the whole story, then we meet them as seniors in high school, and then the story finally takes off at full speed with them as adults. This built the story and the plot very smoothly because through this, we also met the relevant side characters who played roles in the later plot, whom were also likable and enjoyable too.

I was very sad for Kang Seung Mo's character the most. I became very attached for his character, through I predicted his role from the very beginning. His story was so horrific and there's a romantic part of me that feels like his ending wasn't fair (even though, logically and realistically it was more than fair, especially if this story had occurred in real-life). I desperately wanted him to have a happy ending and live a normal, successful life. This is a personal problem I have though, not something objectively wrong with the drama. His relationship with Lee Ahn was particularly precious, especially when you learn of his past. I also think that he did romantically love Eun Ji Soo and was just pushing her away the whole time in his own way to protect her.

Aside from my tragic love for Kang Seung Mo, I really adored Lee Ahn. I loved him because he wasn't your usual MC. He was kinda dumb and I don't say that to be mean. He just literally doesn't have good sense or book smarts, BUT he was kind and good natured despite his past. It was refreshing to have a MMC who wasn't overly perfect in every way. He was obviously flawed - he was impulsive, reckless, and not smart, but he learned, took criticism well, and always took things in stride. He played to his strengths, wasn't afraid to show weakness/vulnerability, and didn't develop an inferiority complex. What I'm trying to say is that he was particularly lovable.

I would have liked for this drama to be a bit better balanced in tones. It was pretty well balanced with humor and tragic pasts/scary cases throughout, but it got a bit heavy and sad for me toward the end (~last 4 episodes). Honestly, I think this is more an issue with me though, not necessarily objectively with the drama - it only makes sense that the drama got sadder and darker as their tragic pasts were completely revealed toward the end, but I feel like the writers being the experts could have maintained the balance a bit better somehow...

While watching He is Psychometric, it reminded me a lot of some other dramas:
While You Were Sleeping (the beginning of the drama in tone and pacing and fantastical abilities)
You're All Surrounded (throughout the drama somewhat in plot and tone)
Pinocchio (the ending of the drama in plot and tone)
What set He is Psychometric apart from these dramas was the unique fantastical abilities of psychometry and the MC, Lee Ahn.

I would definitely recommend this drama, especially if you like one of the above dramas - it would definitely be worth the invested time. The OST is also enjoyable!

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This is the spinoff of Boss Koi and it has a better plot than the main series.

Honestly, I do like the storyline of this spinoff because it mainly focuses on Nakazawa, Kazumi Wada, and Izumi Haruka. At least, in this drama, Nakazawa is no longer the 2nd lead because in this spinoff, he is the main lead. The 2nd lead in this drama is Kazumi Wada despite how brief it is for her to be the 2nd lead. The story of the said spinoff was well created despite the shorterepisodes and shorter runtime provided and it is expected that Nami and Junnosuke won't be featured in this drama because they are not mainly the focus of the story.

The music used is still the same as used in the main series so it is good but I did like how the confession part has its turned around the tables elements like for example, in one of the episodes of the spinoff, Izumi was supposed to confess to Nakazawa but Nakazawa happened to do it anyway and this is an example of a drama that shows that not all things will go according to plan but it may possibly lead to better results.

What I like the most in this drama is that it has its mixture of funny and romantic moments that were well done and/or executed. Despite the said mixture, there will come a time when you might feel sad in some parts of the spinoff but not everyone will feel that kind of element anyway so sometimes, the sad parts in this spinoff is too plain or uninteresting at all because the sad acting lacks connection to the viewers because of how generic and/or too common the sad elements of the spinoff when it comes to love. Well, maybe because I have seen some romantic dramas with the same sad elements in my country so I can say that those things are no longer new and/or fresh to me.

In overall, this spinoff drama is still worth watching despite the flaws that can be seen as you progress through this drama.

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