Reviews

My heart....

I don't know if any show has affected me the way Hidden Love has. I watch with a smile on my face and I even cry through the sweetest scenes. First of all, the age gap is not an issue at all. He is only 5 years older and there is nothing inappropriate in any of the 25 episodes. Please do not be put off by any of the negative comments because you will miss out on a beautiful experience. I rewatched all the episodes while I waited for more episodes to be released. Now that I have watched all 25 episodes, I am so sad because I will miss Jia Xu and Sang Zhi! I also loved Sang Zhi's brother Sang Yan. I read that there will be a sequel with Sang Yan's story called First Frost. I am hoping to see the same actors play Sang Jhi and Jiaxu in First Frost.

Sang Zhi grew up in a loving family. Her parents are kind and generous. Her brother loves her and is protective of her even as he bickers with her. It is still so touching to see how much the brother and sister love each other. I enjoyed watching the beautiful dynamics of Sang Jhi's family. If you enjoy watching sibling relationships, it is another plus for Hidden Love.

Duan Jia Xu had a sad family life, and he worked hard to pay off his father's debts. What made his relationship with Sang Jhi so beautiful is that even though he didn't have money to spare, he always took care of Sang Zhi and refused to take money from her or allow her to pay for anything when he was around. And even more beautiful was the way Sang Zhi cared for Jia Xu by protecting and taking care of him. He never had anyone to rely on and instead took on the burden of taking care of his mother and father. It was so beautiful to see the emotions as he felt Sang Zhi's love for him.

Both Zhao Lu Si and Chen Zhe Yuan are the magic key to Hidden Love. Zhe Yuan expressive eyes...sigh. Just watching him play Jiaxu is enough to convince me that a 17-year-old girl would have a crush and fall in love with him. Lu Si was perfect for Sang Zhi. You just need to watch to see. The BTS clips provide information on the scenes and be sure to watch the extra scenes at the end of each episode. The strawberry scene at the end of episode 13 was one I had to rewatch immediately. I absolutely love this show!!! There is nothing quite like it.

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Utterly disappointing (Only good for a HATE-watch)

The Next Prince feels like an underbaked cake with perfect icing, visually stunning, with gorgeous cinematography, lavish costumes, and clearly a high budget… but the writing is flat, disjointed, and lacking depth.

I actually enjoyed the first episode and felt a spark of interest, but after that, it was all downhill. Each week I found myself less engaged, to the point of skipping entire scenes. The writer set up a promising world and then just… walked out of the room.

Let’s talk about Khanin, or not, because what is there to say? He started off strong with a sassy, confident personality, but the moment he stepped into the palace, all of that disappeared. He became a lovesick puppy following Charan around for no clear reason. Was it just because they’re Zeenunew? Because nothing in the story really justified the romance. Imagine your entire life falls apart after some random guy shows up, and somehow you're supposed to fall for him anyway?

And don't get me started on how Khanin completely forgot his life in the UK the second he entered Emmarly. That entire backstory might as well have been deleted. As for Charan, the idea that he has a debilitating trauma response to rain, and still gets sent alone to the UK to retrieve the crown prince, is just absurd.

Their romance had zero momentum for me. It started with promise but became boring fast.

I adore JimmyOhm, but the Ramil–Paytai dynamic was just bad. Paytai deserved to run far, far away from Ramil, who was cowardly, frustrating, and made no smart choices.

Calvin and Jay actually had an interesting storyline, but they got the screen time equivalent of a fruit fly's lifespan, blink and you miss them.

Princess Ava had potential to be iconic, but her character was reduced to spouting "girl power" lines while being surrounded by constant misogyny. She deserved much better writing.

Now Chakri, Chakri is the moment. Scene-stealer, fan favorite, and honestly the most consistent character in the show. No notes there.

Overall:
The Next Prince is style over substance. Beautiful to look at, but hollow. The cast did what they could, but the writing left them stranded. If you're looking for something to roll your eyes at while admiring the outfits, this might be your perfect hate-watch.

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Jing Boran and Seven Tan acted great, but the plot was draggy, boring with stupid ending

Road Home is a modern drama focused on a long lost love of Gui Xiao and Lu Yan Chen during high school when they broke up and rekindled their love 15 years later.

The drama started great, and Jing Boran and Seven Tan acted great. Still, the plot got boring, stupid, repetitive, and very draggy, especially in the last 5 episodes.

The ending in episode 30 was stupid; it replayed their first encounter, which was repeated in previous episodes. I wish the conclusion showed the married of the 2nd CP.

I agree with Duoban's rating. I initially rated it high, but I am downgrading it to 6.0 because it was boring, draggy, and stupid.

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I liked this movie a lot. I heard about it last year on a blog somewhere and it piqued my interest right away. When I wasn't able to find it with English subs I sort of forgot about it for a while. Then I started to notice Uhm Tae Woong. I'm glad I did.

Like the synopsis say,s the movie is about a troupe of down on their luck actors who open a dating agency and utilize their skills to help people win the object of their affection. It's fun watching the tricks they come up with to hook the prospective mate for their clients. Things take a complicated turn when a man comes in hoping to acquire their services and the woman he fancies is the ex love of Byung Hoon (Uhm Tae Woong).

The story obviously plays on the theme of Cyrano De Bergerac and it's done quite well. But this is not a re-telling or even a moderization of the old classic.

The set design is wonderful. I wanted to hang out in the old theatre where the troupe has their head quarters. The dynamics of the troupe and their interactions were some of my favorite scenes. Although this is not strictly a comedy, there were times when I laughed out loud. I consider it a success when a movie can draw a spontanious loud laugh from me rather than simple amusement. Uhm Tae Woong does a great job here as well as Park Shin Hye (that was a surprise).

The main themes of this movie are love and trust and which is more important? There's also friendship and learning to let go.

The director did a good job of setting the mood of this film and telling the story in way that flowed at an even pace. It is a fairly light movie and I can see why it did so well at the box office.

If you're looking for a fun movie to watch that isn't too dark and yet not overly light and fluffy, this one is a great pick.

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A visual feast with mediocre taste, spiced with some excellent acting.

Cinematography - 7/10
The colors, lights, forests and scene progressions and cut-aways were all nicely done.

OST - 10/10
Burning Petals by 4BOUT (and LJW) were the saving grace of this drama. I found the fusion of Indian and Mongolian throat singing in the OST simply delightful. I am paying the song to live rent free in my head.

Plot - 6/10
The premise was sound. But execution was mediocre and messy with glaring loopholes. Moreso because the secondary xters and extras did more for the story line than the leads especially the FL and ML2. Individually, the ML more or less carried the day. his acting was exceptional and he embodied his xter to the fullest (probably because the script writers factored in his skill set and acting style).
The ML and FL lacked any chemistry in all aspects, and the 0-120MPH speed with with Mu Jin suddenly turned into a stereotypical Saeguk misogynistic fascist will give you whiplash.
The almost incestuous feel of the relationship between the ML and FL cast a distasteful shadow over the story line. If the sibling relationship had been left as is (with maybe a deep affection developing between ML and FL, with ML doing what he did to protect her without wanting to jump her bones at the slightest opportunity, THAT would have worked better).

Aside from LJW, props to Min Yeon Ui for giving as good as she got from Yeol Guk (another masterful actor who brought the appropriate level of gravitas to his role. Lee Jae Wook and Kim Jae Wook xters played off well against each other with Kim bringing a quietly brilliant menace to the screen). You could feel her grief and pain, likewise her unrelenting hatred towards Jae I.

Another plot hole was the nameless, unknown killer ghost, who randomly flew across the screen until he was laid to rest by the ML. Who or what he was and the why of him, remains an abyss in this drama.

Choreography - 10/10
It was a relief that the fight scenes lived up to expectations. Those who needed killing were dispatched with a satisfactory level of slice and dice (not some minor cuts with the ML always playing defense. The Soul Reaper lived up to his name).
Why Mu Jin was not terminated with extreme prejudice (as he well deserved) and was allowed to go gently into that bloody night, was quite irritating.

As mentioned previously, the supporting cast did a lot to carry this drama - Hongrangs's mute companion, the soul reaper's 'brother assassins', Prince Hanpyeong . All brought their A-game to this drama.

Dear Hongrang,
Expectations were high, but you fell off the cliff needlessly. Thankfully, you kept things short and fast-paced when needed.

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A Mad World Unfolds..

Season 2 picks up right where Season 1 left off.. Season 1 was intense, but this season has way more action, blood and honestly some disgusting scenes.. And yeah we finally got the answers to the questions that we were left with.. We get to see the full dose of the Goto’s brutal madness this time and also the family’s twisted past.. Which explains why they are so messed up.. The action scenes were truly next level and Yuya Yagira shines once again.. There is a scene in ep 2 where he has a moment of realisation and goes completely berserk, that was incredible to watch..

" If they are crazy.. Then I will just have to go crazy too.. "

This season is definitely not for the faint hearted.. I expected gore, but some of it was straight up sickening.. But I loved the fact they didn't try to hold back.. They were fully committed to the madness and it worked..

Special shoutout to Tsunematsu Yuri.. Her potrayal of the younger version of Goto Gin was purely cynical.. She was gaslighting, manipulating and using herself as a trophy to get her revenge.. And she was magnificient in every episode she appeared in.. Limited screentime or not, she made the drama twice as compelling with her performance..

" I am madness itself.. Born from this village.. "

When it comes to the visuals, they were violently beautiful.. Some of the frames looked insane.. And the Music matched the vibe too..

It’s a shame that a drama like this doesn’t get the attention it truly deserves.. I really hope it reaches a wider audience because it’s one that deserves to be seen by more people..

Overall, this season takes everything to the next level.. With wild action, powerful performances and a raw intensity.. It has very dark and disturbing elements with bold scenes that only make it more intriguing to watch..

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Truth to be told, it's just a sweet romance between a guy who has confidence and self esteem level -100 and a “perfect” dude that, in fact, is just a human and doesn’t know how to approach the baby. But somehow, it’s more than that…

Adachi does not see much value in himself. He compliments and admires other characters' traits he himself also has. He is smart, nice, polite and hardworking, but if you asked him, he would deny it. With his newly discovered magic powers of reading minds (who knew getting bitten by a radioactive spider is outdated, and staying a virgin is a new way of gaining that superhero title), he slowly, but steadily starts to see how others view him as a worker, friend, or love interest. It’s quite interesting to see how, only by internally being faced with others unfiltered thoughts, Adachi gains the courage and confidence.

Kurosawa, damn boi. The wrinkles killed me. You are reading a review written by a ghost. That smile could stop a war. Not gonna lie though, I did find him creepy at first. But when you accept the fact we also say a lot of over the top and weird shit in our minds, to never be spoken out loud, he is kind of relatable. I truly appreciated how, even though he truly liked Adachi, he didn’t want to force anything on him. He was fine with just being his friend and supporting him. He also struggled with some internal issues that are a focus of one episode. Thanks to that, we can see him in a different light, that makes him that more charming.

I wasn’t crazy about the 2nd couple. Wataya Minato looks 16 at best and Tsuge Masato looks older than any other character (though we know he is 30). The comical and over the top behavior just didn’t click right with me. Not to say Asaka Kodai is a bad actor, he aced that over the top act. It’s just not something that I enjoy in shows.

The acting overall was top notch. Akaso Eiji truly portrayed the confused and low self esteem Adachi well, and love was literally radiating from my screen every time Machida Keita showed up. His facial expressions were so on point, I had to rewatch many scenes, just because I was so amazed by his skill.

The show itself is more than just a rom-com. It touches on issues like self love and self esteem, prejudices, standards forced by society that some might not want to follow and the idea of following and giving up on your dreams.

Why not 10? I have to say, the last episode was quite disappointing. I felt like the events that happened in episode 11 were barely addressed, the explanations given were just easy ways out of the complex situation. Not to mention the last scene, that should just not exist in the first place. It just showed the limits of what actors could have done, set either by themselves or their agencies.

Overall, it was an extremely good watch. I went crazy over Kurosawa because he is the best boi on the planet and I would fight anyone on that. No doubt I will rewatch the series (I’m writing it as if I haven’t rewatch all the eps every week already) and enjoy everyone’s performance.

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I've seen most of the actors in other taiwanese dramas and so I ventured to watch this one mostly for Jiro. The only thing that was wrong with this version is Koo Hye Sun's acting. I loved her in Boys Before Flowers and liked her but this character or maybe her acting was just unbearable. her over the top expressions were a killer. I wasn't expecting much but I;ve seen the Japanese Version. I have also seen Jiro's acting and he was doing a good job in this. I gave up for the second time. This not even Jiro or the rest of the actors could save for me. I didn't even mind the dubbing but her acting was just bad.

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Horny zombies? Did we really need this movie to exist?

When I started the movie, I was ready to keep my finger on the skip button. I read so many people talking about how explicit it is. Even though I am not easily fazed, better safe than sorry. I also got my drink ready… And oh boy I needed that drink double strong to survive this.

This is basically a torture porn here to only deliver shock value content. I don’t know what the movie is supposed to be? It’s not the case of people just losing control over the primal urges, because violence is not one of them. We are literally wired as social creatures by nature. So while the zombies were not brainless, they were still zombies with little to no agency since the virus turned them into violence seeking assholes. So it’s not like an amazingly fresh take on zombies…

The only thing the movie has to offer is gore and, for some twisted people, content fitting their rape fantasis. Some of the gore was gross, some was so ridiculous I actually laughed out loud. One dude lost the amount of blood that no human can possess in their body. There is literally nothing worse than a movie that is both gross AND dumb. I gave up everything when the female lead just sat down in the staircase chilling and also took her shoes off. SHE TOOK HER SHOES OFF DURING ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE.

I give half a point for the acting and half the point for some gore. That’s it. There is no plot, some violence scenes are painfully dumb, all rape scenes are gross. This movie literally serves nothing worth watching.

I want to be clear though, I have no issue with excessive violence in movies, but it has to serve a purpose. Violence for violence is just boring. When the credits rolled I am sure I just looked like a disappointed parent, when your child acts so stupid you have hardly anything to say and just leave the room.

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watch until 01:39:00 ONLY!

the poster was misleading, I thought I'd see han jiwan with the precious baby but she was the adult vr ;)
basically the first half, the first hour and a half was beautiful, Park So Yi was SO AMAZING! her crying was on point and her smiles lit up the world!

the story between this unlikely "family" was cliche but so touching that I just loved watching them until suddenly she became a teen then an adult and boom the story lost it's charm ;(



suddenly right after she called him dad the writer made him get into an accident and they lost him for 10 YEARS! then one day she remembers the nickname she gave him (10 years later!) and that's how they found him! sick and locked up in a mental hospital where he couldn't function! and before his accident suddenly had a terminal disease! what ridiculous blood boiling plot move!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

then in the ending credit she was getting married and had him marry her off and called it a happy ending when he didn't even REMEMBER his name let alone talk! how heart breakingly cheap!!!!!!!!!!!

I did hope it'd be sweet and funny for a rewatch but no, just no

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Bomb storyline and peak comedy (for romcoms)

The set up of the story is really refreshing (characters and circumstances)...I would've been really upset if the execution wasn't there, but I think it held up for the most part. Some are saying that the FL is really dumb...and...I guess she is but I've seen waaaaayy dumber FLs and I feel like its really understandable for people to make not 100% rational decisions when their clouded by their emotions (literally tied to her loosing her second home) and then not know how to back-track.
The comedy was top-of-the-line for romcoms: it doesn't die down (maybe minutely only for a couple episodes in the middle)...I was pleased that I wasn't baited by the first couple episodes. Execution of comedy makes up for a very small issue of some parts of the storyline not flowing as well in-the-moment (there was probably just a handful of times where I would watch and think to myself "but what about this" but then continue watching and see the gaps filled later...not a huge issue though).
Actors fit very well, music was aight, rewatch value is higher-than-normal for that comedy and character design.
I have 4 more episodes to go...pretty sure it won't upset me though: its been consistent :)

update: completed the drama...man had to decrease 0.5 stars for the ending...it was just too cliche. Won't leave you disappointed and I usually don't take down points for clicheness...it just doesn't match with the unique story quality and comedy so far.

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Good premise that runs out of steam

I like morally grey protagonists and I was really excited to see Lee Dong Wook take on this role, especially after his stellar performance in Strangers From Hell. The first few episodes didn't disappoint. The story of a corrupt (but not evil) detective being forced down a more righteous path by his own split personality was an original one. However, about halfway through the drama transitioned into a typical "main character uncovers mystery from his own past" type thing which has been done to death. A lot of things were also left unexplained. While I'm ok with having some things left ambiguous, you at least have to explain enough that the story makes sense. Unfortunately, especially in the last 2-3 episodes, there was a lot left out. So while the premise was interesting, the execution didn't live up to the potential of the story.

There were some positives: The acting was pretty good from all involved. There were a few funny moments. Great OST. I liked the more lighthearted tone of it.

Overall, this would probably make a pretty good weekend binge, provided you don't think too deeply about it. On the whole though, I have to say I was slightly let down by this drama.

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There’s a lot to like about Dear Hongrang, if you’re into costume dramas. It features stunning cinematography and well-designed fight scenes, a mysterious puzzle, complex characters, and a plot that takes us away from the typical court battles that plague most Korean costume dramas. Instead, we get to see a highly dramatic and gloomy portrayal of a wealthy merchant family with numerous secrets.

The drama manages to deliver a lot despite being very dense and having limited time to tell the story, with only eleven episodes when most costume dramas would take at least sixteen. And although the story doesn’t always flow together seamlessly, it gives us plenty of character moments, opportunities for reflection, and space to sit in the silence that lurks between the intense swordfights and the melodrama of the narrative.

There is a heightened soapy drama at play here with some interesting clichés and tropes, but the story still maintains to ground itself with its rawness, the acting, and the beautiful cinematography that just makes the world it’s set in richer. The narrative successfully amplifies the viewer’s emotions, as well as the ambition and intensity of the characters. The story manages to keep you in fascinated suspense most of the time, even though the episodes perhaps rely a bit too much on flashbacks and sometimes lacked balance between the side-plots.

I must say that I found the story sometimes too melancholic, and the gloomy atmosphere it created tiring to watch, even though the plot and characters kept me captivated. I took the occasional breaks in the middle of an episode and returned to it when I was ready. The story is heavy, as if it’s pressing down on us just like the characters’ past does.

And yet Dear Hongrang never seemed to try to be brutal just for the sake of being brutal. It seemed as if every terrible death we were shown was there to move the story forward or shed light on the cruelty in this melancholic, difficult, and harsh world that these characters find themselves in.

The love story between the main characters wasn’t for me, even though I enjoyed the chemistry, the tropyness as well as the longing glances. But I found it came on rather too suddenly, and I felt the episodes actually had enough to do with the mystery and family drama.

Dear Hongrang was a gloomy, demanding, and highly dramatic watch with a fascinating mystery and a heavy tone that is certainly not for everyone. But the pain of the narrative and the longing that the story carries and the sorrow of the characters stays with you for some time.

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A refreshingly sassy KDrama, critically reckoning with the South Korean education system (and love)

“The Midnight Romance in Hagwon” promises a love story with its international title - and that's what we get. Jung Ryeo-won and Wi Ha-joon are creating the relatively adult, authentic aura of a tender but complicated love relationship between a former graduate and his former tutor. Yet, the two are more than a couple. Today, as teachers, they inspire each other to teach didactically creative. And in doing so, they also inspire their students.

Thus, the KDrama, which in the original means something like “The Graduate”, basically offers more than a romance. It is rather a quite critical reckoning with the South Korean education system. The criticism: It's less about education than about grades -and a lot of money is involved in getting good grades. The students learn the correct answers to their questions. They therefore receive any effective support outside of school, mainly in the tutoring academies, provided their parents can afford it. However, there is one thing, the students don't learn: how to ask the right questions. They don't learn to question or get to the bottom of something. They know their material they have to memorize and what formulas they should be able to apply. Everything else is not part of the entrance exam or a prerequisite for qualifying for admission to one of the three large SKY universities. It has to be Seoul National University, Korea University or Yonsei University (S, K and Y), if anyone in South Korea is to become something...

"The Midnight Romance in Hagwon" aka "The Graduate" takes stock of the prevailing, dubious, even misleading values of a society, still trying to convince the people that they have to obsessively achieve something in order to be valuable of some sort.

When it comes to the academy teaching staff, it is about tailor-made exam preparation, courting parents an acquiring new students. Looking to the right or left, seeing a student as an individual human being with dreams and needs, let alone respond to them? Oh my! Whether it's students or scandals, it's never about the people. It's always about the money. A lot of money. The competition is enormous. The South Korean education market is a lucrative economic engine that is humming along happily.

This KDrama offers a wonderfully staged, emotionally sensitive and vivid approach to these issues, using the fate of various ambitious, highly motivated teachers who would like to try something different, but are not allowed to. They are surrounded by elitist parents who are ready to do anything for the glorious future of their beloved, dearest offspring. They are also surrounded by fiercely competitive academies that are just waiting for someone to make a mistake, because then those protégés can easily be poached and their own coffers start ringing instead...

What a refreshingly sassy KDrama, dealing with all those issues...

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