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A Female Student Arrives at the Imperial College
19 people found this review helpful
Romance, Comedy and Acting
This drama was better than I thought, I had it in my list and waited until it fully aired and subbed to watch it, I did see some comments and review and was a bit nervous, but i decided that I rather not read anything else and watch this for myself, if it was trash so be it and if it's great then I'll be happy.Well, compared to all the nonsense drama they have, this drama was great, it was way better than i expected, that's why recently it doesn't matter the reviews, comments and ratings, i determine what I wanna watch and if it's no good then fine, if not then that's great, because not everyone gives honest reviews, or not every drama is for everyone, but this was for me.
I'm a sucker for romcom, heavy on the rom and the com, i also like romantic drama, and i love historical drama's, I'm picky but I try my best to give the benefit of the doubt, and I also go into shows with no expectations, I've learnt that the hard way, I rather have no expectation and be happy with a drama, rather than have high expectation and become very disappointed.
With that being said, This drama was very funny, very romantic, yet sweet and sour. The acting was pretty good, the villain well he stood out a lot, i hated his character lool the actor was way too good. The ML and FL tbh i loved there chemistry and i love the romance between them, they ha a very healthy relationship and i enjoyed watching them, i also loved this drama because of the comedic relieves, i get kinda down when i watch something with too much drama and angst, but i loved how this was very balanced.
The other thing i really liked with this drama, i loved the progress of the FL, the different stages of educational and career growth, I'm trying not to spoil lol, but i liked that it didn't stay in one stage the entire time, but we get to see her growth, and the ending was very nice, truly represent the message from the title. There was also a lot of character development for a lot of the characters, I loved that as well
So with that being said, i personally enjoyed this drama, everyone did great, the acting, chemistry, romance, comedy, drama i thought it was well balanced, i did not leave the drama feeling burdened or heavyhearted hahaha, i enjoyed this show and i am happy i watched it, good show to just chillout and watch. Every show has it's little flaws, but personally I was too busy enjoying rather than critiquing, I've seen more than 250 shows, trust me this compare to others is one of those simple nice ones, ratings should definitely be higher.
Ps. If you're going to watch, try not reading too much comments, reviews and so on, judge for yourself and give it a chance, not just this show but every show, go in with a neutral expectation and then let it flow naturally.
Take care and happy drama watching ❤😊
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If you’re not watching Story of Kunning Palace you are missing out in life!!!
Whoever, is trying to find a drama that will send you in comas back and forth, turn your heart inside out and back in, give you series of asthma attacks!!! Highly highly recommend watching Story of Kunning Palace!!!Story of Kunning Palace is literally the masterpiece of all masterpieces!!! Bai Lu and Zhang LingHe’s acting of course is spectacular!!! Their abiliy to immerse themselves into their characters as if they were actually JiangXueNing and XieWei and expresss such powerful and deep emotions is insaneeee!!! In addition, their chemistry sky rockets into the sky!!! This is what scientists should study!!! And their visuals!!! Do I need to even comment on that!!! I mean whatever scene they are in they look heavenly beautiful!!!
The storyline of this drama is also sooooo well-written and addictive!!! Just the 1st episode and I was completely immersed into this drama!!! The fact that 5 epidoes were cut due to some issues, this drama is still perfectly paced and doesn’t have any missing parts!!! Also each character has their own moments to shine and have a storyline without it being unnecessary and boring!!!! This drama is probs the 1st drama where I never played forward or 2x speeded it!!! In addition, tho this drama seems to be on the serious and dull side, I guarantee you its not!!! There are many scenes that were soooo sweet, romantic and hilarious that’s makes you blush and smile while sleeping!!!! However, there are also scenes that make you hold your breath from the tension and cry rivers and oceans from the story!!!
Ultimately, everything about this drama is perfection!!! The whole cast, storyline, cinematography, OST, costumes, etc is a chef’s kiss!!! Honestly for me this drama is an infinite out of 10 but kisskh only lets me rate it 10/10!!!
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This review may contain spoilers
This show is like an abusive partner - gaslighting you into thinking the trauma was not that bad.
What an emotional journey it was. This is how you write a complex female lead and realistic portrayal of how hard it is to deal with your past traumas and fears. Sometimes after moving forward one step, you go back two.This is a one woman story. Kang Hui is the main character and everyone around her is just an accompaniment to her solo performance, and it’s great. She was a deeply hurt, scared, insecure, but also strong-willed and brave person. Yes, you can present the opposite characteristics depending on the circumstances you are currently in. That duality was what made her unique compared to many other kdrama characters.
She was so beautifully flawed and frustrating to watch. Constantly making mistakes, not knowing how to stand up for herself, lying, running away, pushing forward. I wanted to slap her back to reality, and hug her to console her. But when you frame her behavior in the context of her life, it all makes sense.
She faced abuse and neglect since childhood. She had the whole town against her. Adults telling her she is the reason her mother died. She felt unwelcomed whenever she went. She was blamed for her mother's actions. She was blamed for others’ mistakes. The town treated her as a plague that brought misfortune, even when she was just a small child.
The way they presented her get back on her feet and then crumble over and over again was painful to watch, but also so refreshing. She felt like a real person.
However, as good as the journey was, the conclusion could not have been more trash. Since when do we show victims of years of abuse apologize to their abusers on their knees? The whole last two episodes were kind of insulting. The way one beautifully shot scene of Kang Hui apologizing to her younger self was a conclusion to years of abuse, bullying and built up trauma she faced in that town just made me angry.
Why try resolving and fixing the extremely unhealthy relationship between father and daughter and make the father take accountability of the neglect, when you can just give him cancer and make the daughter feel guilty about it?
I honestly feel gaslit. With the last two episodes and how casual everyone was about Kang Hui’s past and how everyone treated her, I started questioning if I imagined parts of the plot. The same people who screamed at her and told her she is the reason her mother died are now saying her father raised her well? Am I losing my mind, or is the drama truly showing this? WHY WERE THE BULLIES INVITED FOR THE DINNER AT THE END?
Every time they showed one of the town people acting nice I kept asking - Why? What happened? What changed? Did you all have group therapy behind the scenes and reflected on your actions? Why now? Ladies and gentleman, the credits are about to roll - smile and act nice, we need a happy ending. It does not matter if it makes sense or not.
You CANNOT make a whole drama focused on how hard it is to heal from your traumas, with the female lead who keeps going back to her bad habits, running away, pushing people away. Showing how poorly she was treated not only as a child, but also as an adult. How none of the people in her life truly understood how abusive they were. To then magically heal everyone and make it the peaceful happy town where everyone is friendly and they all support each other.
The whole show was filled with hypocrisy that was never addressed. Love cures it all was the ridiculous approach to this story. Probably one of the worst conclusions I have seen in the past few years.
Back to the good - the performances. To be honest, I picked this drama to get over my unreasonable dislike towards Lee Se Young, and the magic happened. Her portrayal of Kang Hui was truly stunning. Perfect in every area. There was nothing I would change nor improve. On the other hand, Na In Woo was kind of there, filling the space. Maybe because they never truly developed his character to the same extent they did with Kang Hui, his take on Yeon Su felt a bit flat. While I disliked Chun Pil as a person, I adored Choi Min Soo’s portrayal of him. What a vibrant performance it was. The role was painfully hard to present. He had to show both the nonchalance, but also the seriousness of his personality.
For the visuals - it is a show that you will want to take screenshots of every few seconds. Beautiful.
Overall, I might have been traumatized by the laughable Disney ending. Magically everyone was cured, everyone was nice, pretending like the past never existed. I loved Kang Hui, I loved her journey, but the express trip to Happy Ever After by the end, kind of made me angry.
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1This review may contain spoilers
SAY HELLO TO THE REAL ME
Hey, everybody. Ji Woo here.It's no secret that you loved me in "To My Star", because I've read the glowing reviews and comments here on MDL as well as every other social media platform. In that series I'm a grumpy chef with no patience for celebrities or celebrity culture, who ironically ends up having to live with a major movie star and falls in love. The series was one of the great romantic comedies of 2021, with amazing rewatchability.
I must confess, though, that I wasn't really cool with it. You see, while in that series I made deadpan wisecracks and rolled my eyes at the rascal behavior of my soon-to-be boyfriend, beneath the surface I was actually a seething cauldron of rage, further hobbled by a malignant case of low self-esteem.
I know, I know -- I did an amazing job hiding it. To watch me in "To My Star" you would never know how profoundly unhappy I was, or how much I resented the man you thought I loved.
But I have good news -- there's a Season Two now, and in that series I let it all hang out. For TMS2 I made it known I wanted my toxic antisocial side to be as front and center as possible, despite however much it might clash with the lovable grouch I was in Season One.
I asked the director if we could start out by brainstorming on how to debunk the me of TMS1. And she was up for it, let me tell you. By then she'd achieved tons of acclaim for the romantic comedies she'd directed. The notices about her were even better than mine or the ones for TMS1 itself -- they made out like she was the goddam Nora Ephron of Asian drama. But to her credit she wasn't satisfied with that and wanted to achieve a new level of creativity, kind of like Woody Allen did when he brought out "Interiors" after his own string of legendary romantic comedies. (Sorry -- I know it's probably not PC to mention the Woodster.)
So, she and I got to work, and since you've read this far I'll share some of what you can look forward to.
In TMS2, I:
1. Leave my boyfriend on his birthday after he doesn't show up on time for the birthday party I never told him about, and which I can't possibly postpone until the next day because, well, in Season One I'd also walked out on him on his birthday. The viewers who want an early start on talk of how deep this season is will love the parallels.
2. To signify that this series will be the cold winter that befalls the warm summer of Season One, leave my boyfriend a terse breakup note along with the box containing the uneaten birthday cake, placing the box where he'll be sure to find it when he returns to the darkened, silent house.
3. Disappear for a year while making no contact whatsoever. True -- it's risky to drag it out unrealistically, but it has to be a full year because a two or three month disappearance is for sissies. We're reaching for extremes here.
4. Start up an Italian restaurant in my bleak home town, opening for business every day for months without a single customer while still buying food and supplies that I prep in the kitchen each morning.
5. Bear the crushing weight of a dark scandal caused by a friend of my parents, that everyone in town takes out on me by not eating at my restaurant.
6. Have my obsessed ex-girlfriend show up all the way from the USA with one goal in mind: rekindling the relationship we had as teenagers. In a dramatic contrast to my horrible treatment of my boyfriend, make sure I treat her only with kindness and understanding.
7. Befriend a little moppet straight out of Central Casting: precocious and adorable, spouting lines of adult dialog like they were written by Neil Simon, but then hurt and vulnerable when we need to generate a crisis. Above all, make sure I always treat her with kindness and understanding as well. Heck, let's even have her start out by calling me "Dad".
7. Have my boyfriend show up after a year of desperate searching, begging to understand what has happened and with one goal in mind: bringing our relationship back from the brink. In contrast to my benevolent treatment of my ex and my friend's daughter, have me treat him like a piece of dogshit I thought I'd scraped off my shoe months ago.
8. Make sure this includes me telling my boyfriend repeatedly how I never actually loved him. I'll gaslight him by implying it must have been his imagination the whole time.
9. But, in a plot twist, have me give him a big sloppy kiss one night and then sleep with him ... only to revert back to the shit treatment the next morning.
10. After my boyfriend finally gives up and leaves, have me read about the relapse of his illness, which is almost certainly due to the stress I've put him through.
11. But then, before viewers can start to blame me, include a scene where I finally turn on the phone I've had switched off since the day I disappeared. Show me ugly-crying while I read the poignant messages from the man I abandoned.
12. Finally reveal the reason why I wanted my boyfriend to feel so much pain: I was lonely. He had a job that kept him busy, and while I certainly could have gone back to working in a restaurant or even opened one of my own, I stayed home and quietly seethed.
There's more, but I don't want to spoil it for you.
Tbh, there were moments when I worried we might go too far with all my terrible behavior. Fans of Season One would want to kick my ass over the 180 in my personality and the dark, angry tone of the whole enterprise. That's when the director reassured me that in the last two episodes we'd do another 180. My personality from Season One would miraculously reappear.
I worried that such a HEA ending might seem too fake and forced. After revealing my rotten core, how could even a wane smile from me ring true? But the director insisted. She felt that as much as she'd enjoyed the challenge of throwing Season One under the bus she had to reclaim her romantic creds. The final two episodes would be a return to the bright and easy comforts of Season One. After enduring so much sadness and frustration, viewers would be weeping for joy over the tsunamis of fluff suddenly crashing over them. Even better, the return of the Season One vibe would almost certainly silence the critics while making TMS2's defenders all the more adamant.
Still, I was skeptical, I'm telling you.
She reassured me, though. She said that this kind of crazy shit makes people go tribal. If anybody complains about the sudden happy ending, or about the whiplash plot points or the inexplicable disconnect between the grumpy but lovable me of Season One and the asshole I am in Season Two, it won't be a question of defending the show on its merits -- fans will just change the subject and say the complainers have no eye for genius. Season Two will be declared an absolute masterpiece no matter what. And if commenters dare to dissent they'll be told that all they want to watch is fluff, and they wouldn't know Great Art if a painting fell on them in The Louvre.
Finally, if you end up loving TMS2 as much as I do you'll be pleased to know that we're already thinking about a Season Three. It would feature even more crazy antics by yours truly, because, honestly, unless I get some serious therapy there's no telling when I'll relapse. The possibilities are endless!
Sincerely,
Han Ji Woo
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This review may contain spoilers
Oh boy, strap yourselves in for this review.It seems I’m starting to have a type for Cdramas: Modern Woman gets Chucked Into Chinese Ancient Times - A World Full of Hot Men.
Kinda crazy when you think about, imagine diving into your own fanfic (every girl’s dream)
However, this drama was the definition of a mess. On paper, the premise and plot sound interesting (it's what drew me to the show after all) but watching it was a whole other story. There are so many flaws I don't even know where to begin.
The biggest problem in this show is the female lead. Chen Qian Qian is so ditsy, I found myself cringing at her actions 90% of the time. She spends so much time trying to make the story go exactly the way she wrote it in the script. Always trying to play wingman for the male lead and her sister and referencing the original storyline she wrote. All I wanted was for her to finally have an epiphany like ‘Omg, things can go different from the original story!’ What a concept! She wasn't dealing with a Back to the Future situation where she had to fix the past - this is a FANFIC. A story can go in ANY DIRECTION and I wished that she would just go with the flow rather than constantly trying to make things go her way.
I was also surprised how quickly she adapted to feudal life, she literally went from 21st century norms to historical China (or a made up version of it at least) and she was like “oh this is what’s happening, okay”. The only thing that separated her from everybody else in this world was how she kept trying to keep the plot on track. Speaking of, I don't understand her reasoning behind this. She has this idea that by making the story come to its written end, it will just magically plop her right back where she left off in the real world like some bad dream. Where is her logic behind this???
But what I missed from her character is she never has any 'modern' moments. For example, her saying something contemporary only we would understand (but would sound like gibberish to everyone else). I guess what I’m trying to say is: apart from her awareness that she is in a fake world (that she wrote), you wouldn’t even know she was a modern woman. She never has any times where her modern (future) knowledge comes in handy. For e.g. in ‘Moon Lovers’, Hae Soo helped the crown prince who had eczema because she recognised the symptoms and knew what would help his condition. Or Xiao Tan from ‘The Eternal Love’. She made endless modern references, forged a scooter, had a Victoria’s Secret fashion show, did a fun public dance in the street - she was iconic. I guess I just consider it wasted potential for Qian Qian's character.
Speaking of wasted potential, I need to talk about the second female lead: Chu Chu. I was so upset that her character regressed into the typical bitchy second lead (to the extreme I might add). At the beginning of the drama I found it so refreshing for the 2nd FL to be nice! After such a kind sisterly relationship in the beginning, it was such a let down to see it turn sour (especially when a lot of it was related to stealing a man). It hurt to see Chu Chu totally embrace the dark side, she has some major insecurity issues when it comes to Qian Qian.
I should also add, can the writers stay true to what they've written please? This whole time the plot has been centred around which princess will become the Young City Master, the heir to the City Master position. We are led to believe the City Master is the one in control of Huanyuan. But after some major political changes as everything is falling apart, the audience's concept on who controls the city does a full 180. Wasn't the City Master the one who had all the power and made the rules? But apparently the Minister of Defence has the power to instil laws and make political moves as well?? Like, how does a Minister of Defence get to decide on the city’s dress code??
And can we take a look at the logistics of this whole world please. Is EVERYTHING in this world written by Chen Xian Qian? Every character? All the backstory and history? She’s only a scriptwriter, I swear the drama script she wrote wasn’t that detailed. So…does the world just fill in the blanks? Because I don’t understand how this entire world was written by her, yet she knows nothing. For e.g. she wrote traitor Su Zi Ying’s character right? Yet she had no clue how Qian Qian’s character treated him badly when they were kids. How can that be? Did she write that in the script or not? Or what about the gasoline that was discovered under the mines? Total shock to her. How much of this world DID she write? Or is this universe just making its own rules and history? So many questions
Now, onto the couple. We all know that it's practically inevitable for a couple to have one of those forced breakups. Especially the ones that involve telling hurtful lies, secretly for their partner's ‘own good’. What I've always hated about this trope (apart from the obvious) is they can achieve the SAME RESULT by communicating with their partner and saying what needs to happen. Qian Qian could have literally told Han Shuo: "hey can you go to a secret location for the time being? I have a feeling a storm is coming and I want you out of harm’s way." it's THAT simple.
Another thing in regards Han Shuo: his heart condition. I feel like I need to voice the words of Dan Oh: “I have heart disease, why am I coughing?”
Where do I even begin with Han Shuo. Look, I love him a lot and he has many great moments. He is a loyal partner and supports Qian Qian wholeheartedly. His devotion to her is true, I completely acknowledge that. BUT there is something that happened that I feel like everyone forgot about. BIG red flag here.
There is a scene where Qian Qian is under house arrest (under Han Shuo's order) and he tries to sexually assault her. He keeps going until she just bursts into tears, it’s so hard to watch. He stops and you know what he SAYS? “You ruined my mood” yikes, yikes, yikes
And then he comes out of the house to see Mr 2nd lead out who's out in the rain and says “Do Chen Qian Qian’s screams sound nice?” Is it possible for my skin to crawl even further?
(I do know he had his reasons behind it - but even if he wasn't planning on going through with it, does that make it okay??)
I also understand that they eventually heal their broken relationship afterwards, but it was such an impactful scene (in all the wrong ways) that I couldn't forget it.
Another thing about their relationship is how Han Shuo calls himself her husband, but it feels so weird because did they REALLY get married?? They skipped literally every tradition and ceremony and didn’t consummate, so what DID they do to earn their marital status exactly?? And especially considering it was a marriage of kidnapping, does it really count?
(( And did they have their first time in a jail cell of all places? Ouch ))
Okay I should talk about what I did like about the story though so it's not just a review of negativity lol
I loved the idea of these 2 cities which the story is focused around. Xuanhu: where men is the superior sex. And Huanyuan: the other where woman are superior. It’s interesting to see a world where the roles are reversed and the women are in control. I was entranced by the beginning where they showed Huanyuan's social norms and history (where it's a blessing if the baby is a girl and a disappointment if it is a boy. A city where only women could study, have important positions, be soldiers, be the head of the household, etc). There is SO much to unpack with this concept. Unfortunately we only scrape the surface for the majority of the drama and only in the final 3 episodes do we finally get to see Xuanhu city. It's only then when we start to get into some good stuff like gender equality and comparing the two cities. I wish there was more focus on this!!
(And along the way there's a reveal that Han Shuo is Mulan’s son??? Say what? What IS this universe lmao)
Honestly... why do I feel like my favourite thing in Tiger and Rose is the costume department? XD
Chen Qian Qian had the most gorgeous clothes!!! Everybody has exceptional clothing, did all the budget go towards this hahaha
On the whole: the premise for Tiger and Rose was intriguing. However, it needed to be properly executed for it to be a drama worth giving credit to
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1When natural acting meets right casting
Jimmy & Sea .....these two names are enough for me to watch this series. After the huge success of ' Last Twilight ' they are back again with an amazing series.Honestly the plotline is completely different. The way Sea portrayed In's character wow . Jimmy is always different, another green flag character from him.
There is literally no boring scene . Each episode is full of laughing, crying, teasing, bickering etc etc .
The music is in a word WOW . I really want to kiss that person's hands who created & wrote this amazing ART .
Should I talk about visuals ? Definitely yes . Jimmy in this new hairstyle, is extremely handsome & about Sea , he is one of the prettiest/ handsome man I ever saw . When he smiles, we also automatically smile with him . His smile has some magic right ?
Give this drama a try , I know you will not regret.
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This review may contain spoilers
A must watch if you want to learn about life and relationships
If you are looking for a show about life and relationships, "Forecasting Love and Weather" is it. However, if you are looking for a feel-good, very romantic touchy-feely, "I want this show to fit my biased imaginary romantic fantasy", then skip it."Forecasting Love and Weather" is about life and relationships. It is about the decisions we make, why we make them, and the repercussions of those decisions. This is not about your favourite actors having a blissful romantic butterfly-in-the-stomach story, this is about relationships between parents and children, supervisor and subordinate, a person's relationship with their work and officemates, between married couples, ex-couples who became friends (yes, it does happen in real-life far more frequently than society wants you to believe), how people change, how people regret things and what they learn from it.
In short, LIFE.
And they did well in portraying and tell the story of the different scenarios people do experience in real-life, out there in the real-world. The pain, the joy, reality itself. Every single scenario, every single decision, were true-to-life, scenarios that many people actually experienced.
The poetic monologues in the beginning and ending of each episode were also deep and very appropriate. It pierces through our hearts and souls. More than that, they tied weather patterns into various relationships. Who would've thought that we reframe weather forecasting in such a way? After having watched this series, it does make perfect sense … relationships, no matter what type it is, is like weather and forecasting. We may get it right, we may get it wrong. It may turn out correct but not exactly what we expected it to be, or it may be a very bad forecast but we push and find a way to learn and fix it.
Kudos as well to using the meteorological setting. Let's be honest, in every country in the world, the public always see meteorological agencies as "wrong", "not doing their job right", "should be defunded", we are forgetting that forecasting is forecasting and there are people working overtime, even to the point of unknowingly sacrificing their families and personal lives, just to give an accurate forecast.
Hopefully, this show would have had opened the eyes of the public to the kind of work and sacrifices meteorologists go through. Yes, they should not have prioritized their work over their families and personal lives, but we can not blame them when the public expects 100% accuracy, and if they their forecast turned out inaccurate, nations are in an uproar and wants to investigate and terminate them.
Which simply brings back to … this show is about LIFE and RELATIONSHIPS. If this is not your cup of tea, if you are looking for an escape from reality and live in a fantasy world, this is not the show for you.
But if you are looking for learn, then this is a perfect show.
Lastly, even though they chose the "and they ALL lived happily ever after", the road to that was well-written. They did not just jump into that conclusion, they still went through and highlighted the trials and tribulations of each relationship (romantic, family, parent-children, work). They avoided the common pitfall in the "they lived happily ever after" ending.
Well done. Touching. Memorable.
Best of all
Full of LIFE LESSONS!
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This review may contain spoilers
The juice wasn't worth the squeeze
This show infuriated me by the end. Snowdrop came in with a bunch of promise halted by waves of controversy — if you avoided this show because of that, congrats, nothing about it should tempt you to watch it after all.To be honest, this show started with a bunch of potential. I loved the nostalgic vibes and shiny wide-eyed jaunt towards first love. Snowdrop started to lose momentum once they got into the hostage situation. It dragged on way too long. I understood the point it was trying to make about politics and corruption, but we got the point after just a couple episodes. Someone joked that they blew their whole production budget on the dorm, and honestly, that sounds like the most plausible answer (considering they had to pay an all-star cast too... but we'll get to that in a second). Moreover, the last couple episodes were tropey and infuriating beyond belief. I didn't care enough about the romance to feel anything for Youngro or Sooho; the show didn't do enough early on to make us cheer for them. And then before we knew it, we were being bombarded by noble idiocy and regular idiocy galore. So many situations toward the end could've EASILY been preventable. Trust these competent agents; don't insert yourself into situations unnecessarily (this is directed at BOTH of our leads).
Jisoo especially frustrated me. All of the actors were incredible EXCEPT for her. And I swear, I enjoy Blackpink music! But she was so clearly out-acted throughout the whole show. She was tolerable for a couple of episodes, but once the hostage situation kicked in, she was clearly out of her depth. She gasped so much throughout the rest of the drama that I'm surprised she didn't pass out from the hyperventilation. She was the most useless person in the whole drama — you could arguably consider her a "candy" (not in the classic kdrama definition of the trope, but by effectively serving as bait for the ANSP and Sooho). Worse than a candy girl though, I'd argue that she was a straight-up liability. She was unwilling to compromise or sacrifice anything for the greater good of others. This was exemplified in a situation at the end that involved saving a random side character and harming four other main characters in the process (even leading to the demise of the one she cared about the most!). She blindly ran into situations without a plan and without being equipped to do anything, thus putting other people at even greater risk as they sought to protect her and achieve whatever random agenda she cooked up. I hate that she faced no consequences for this behaviour either; it wasn't even acknowledged as problematic. Jisoo's acting was awful too — I always knew I was watching JISOO, not some character named Youngro. This character could've had so much nuance and depth: idealistic, innocent, and in love, sure, but she could've also been defiant, emboldened, and thoughtful. If her actions were clearly borne of some strategic thought, I would've sympathized with Youngro. Instead, she was stubborn without seemingly any rationale, which made all her actions seem rash and ultimately stupid.
Then let's talk about the romance: it was cute at first, but based on where the story went, it really should've been relegated to a side-plot that took up less air time. Leave it as "Not meant to be" and move on. We lost so much closure and momentum towards the end of the drama by unnecessarily focusing on the romance. Think of all the moments Sooho and Youngro spend gripping each other, asking the other to go, and staring into each others' eyes without any interruption. You know what they could've done in that time? THEY COULD'VE ESCAPED INTO SAFETY TOGETHER. Of course, the more realistic situation would've been if there were constant pressure and action instead, with no time to shoehorn their longing for one another. Because of those moments, especially towards the end, it made their entire tragic situation seem completely avoidable. I found myself shouting at the TV during each of these moments, yelling at them to just GO already instead of standing there (in the basement).
Aside from Jisoo and the romance, the other actors did a wonderful job. I never cared for the moms' machinations (although I suppose they added some levity) or the political squabbles (how silly they turned out to be, although perhaps that was the point?), and I felt too many people were overly motivated by love (Jang Hanna, Kang Cheong Ya, and Lim Sooho especially), but some of the acting was truly superb. To me, there were four standouts: Jung Hae-In excellently blew past his archetype as only playing the boy-next-door in noona dramas. Kim Hye Yoon (Bun Ok), you somehow make me sympathetic towards you while truly giving us the least to cheer for. My only qualm was your choice to help Youngro save Ms. Oh towards the end — how was that choice in any way aligned with Bun Ok's motivations to SAVE HER OWN HIDE above all else? Yoon Se Ah (Ms Pi), I CANNOT believe you are the same person that portrayed Noh Seung Hye in SKY Castle — un-freaking-BELIEVABLE how incredibly she embodied that role as the headmistress. I would seriously watch a movie based on Ms. Pi's life alone. Yoo In Na (Kang Cheong Ya), who knew you had this role in you? I honestly wished Sooho spared her a single glance (or even wound up escaping with her as a way to avoid putting Youngro in harm's way). The rest of the cast did their job too; shout-out to students like Jung Shin Hye (who I liked to think of as "Madonna" for her stylish 80s fashion) and Kim Mi Soo, may she rest in peace.
This drama got my blood pressure up from the suspense; very much shades of SKY Castle. Unfortunately, it didn't critique current issues or hit the zeitgeist the way SKY Castle did, and it also didn't have the cathartic payoff due to its lacklustre, romance-oriented finale. Save yourself the pain of finishing this one!
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This review may contain spoilers
I want to start by saying that My Youth isn’t a bad drama, just an unsuccessful one.. My issue with it is that it feels more like a collection of parts than a cohesive whole.. The pieces seem disjointed, out of rhythm with one another, never quite coming together into a story that feels complete or purposeful.. To me, it lacked those small connective moments that turn a sequence of scenes into something that truly moves as a narrative..I was honestly reluctant to watch it because of the low ratings.. I am not someone who avoids Song Joong Ki’s dramas, not because I am a fan but because I appreciate his work.. The ratings did influence me, but I decided to ignore them and give it a try and I would say I did the right thing.. Is it a stunning piece of drama?? No, its not.. Is its storytelling style for everyone?? Probably not.. I can understand why some viewers might struggle to connect with the tone and pacing, especially in the early episodes.. Even I agree it’s slow, but that alone isn’t enough reason to justify such low ratings..
Personally, I didn’t like the first few episodes except for the parts with their younger versions.. The characters felt a bit weak, they didn’t have much impact.. It’s a narrative driven story, so I should have felt ' I don’t fully know where this is going yet, but these characters feel real. ' But it took a while for that to happen.. I agree with the most common concern, the pacing is indeed the real issue here.. 12 episodes felt like 20.. It’s too slow and the story itself isn’t anything new.. We just see that old, overused trope told from a different perspective with a new set of actors.. The acting was definitely the highlight of the drama..
Now, my biggest issue with this drama is how they underplayed the illness part of the story.. I mean it’s a melodrama, that’s supposed to be your main weapon.. But it didn’t make me feel anything, not the way lets say a drama like Our Movie did.. There's an illness that could kill the ML, but that’s it, it’s just there.. He is struggling, things happen around it and then it’s over.. It never reaches that emotional intensity you would expect from a story built around something so serious..
The romance, well I liked their chemistry, but I think the writer let down the actors in that aspect.. Their interactions were good but the writing felt weak.. It never really gave Song Joong Ki and Chun Woo Hee the space to show what they are truly capable of.. I sort of understand why people liked the second couple’s romance.. It was simpler and less complicated.. But to me, their story felt incomplete.. For a drama that felt too lengthy, we didnt' get enough of their story and that was a disappointment..
For me, the last 3 episodes were the best, well written, well executed part of the show.. The realization of what's happening and what's about to happen and what the first 9 episodes had been setting up for.. The emotions of each characters, even the supporting characters.. That final part, was just pure performative excellence.. But they did really dropped the ball on that ending.. It felt abrupt.. It should have been about everyone.. It almost felt like the others didn't matter.. For me a final scene bringing the whole family and friends together would have been the perfect closure..
I wanted to mention a few other things..
Saw a lot of people saying they rated the drama less because they weren’t satisfied with the romance.. But this is a melodrama, not a rom com.. The genre defines the story.. You knew what you were getting into.. If you can’t handle that, then no offense but maybe this just isn’t the kind of drama for you..
Song Joong Ki’s costumes were an absolute mess.. They could have gone with a simpler, more casual look but instead they ended up choosing some of the worst outfits for him..
Every time I read comments like, Ji Hoon is a much better actor than his peers, I can’t quite agree, at least not in the context of this drama.. His character simply wasn’t the kind of role that allows an actor to truly stand out.. His role could have been performed by many of his peers and achieved the same level of recognition.. I am not saying he isn’t talented, he is but this just wasn’t a challenging role.. His chemistry with the SFL was the only standout factor in this drama for him, not his acting..
I really hated how easily the parents were forgiven in the drama, especially Nu Ri’s mother.. She abandoned a young girl in the hands of her boyfriend, someone she herself didn’t trust enough to stay with.. And then she had the audacity to come back after all those years as if nothing had happened..
I really hope Song Joong Ki comes back with something like Vincenzo again.. Dramas like My Youth which rely heavily on story and performance are often unfairly overlooked.. He is one of the best actors in the KDrama industry and he doesn’t deserve the kind of hate he is been getting..
Overall, My Youth is definitely not for everyone, some might find the story too slow or bland.. But with a wonderful cast of characters and some strong performances from the leads, I would say My Youth is a good one time watch..
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All that drama....for this???
I'm sorry but this show is bad. I don't think many people actually had high hopes with it, between the fact that it was delayed for so long, then all the drama with the actors not being paid, etc. etc. but wow, I did not expect it to be THIS bad. I want to say that Jeff and Barcode made this watchable but frankly, they didn't. Nothing about this show was very good at all - the dialogue wasn't good, the plot was pretty stupid, and the show itself just ended up feeling like a whole lot of nothing. Also, I feel like no one is talking about the elephant in the room of everyone speaking different languages??? Sure, you can argue that the aliens can translate every language or whatever, but the humans can't! You've got one conversation going with two people speaking Thai, two speaking Korean, and one speaking English and they're all just supposed to understand each other? Plus, the characters barely made any sense in themselves considering they tried to develop an entire nation of aliens with weird powers (tasting through your hands?) and desires to take over the world in a show that lasts less than 4 hours. Not to mention the character that is but also is not a dog...? Frankly, I don't care how much you like JeffBarcode, this show is not worth it.Was this review helpful to you?
The writer seems to have forgotten logic for most of the parts, or we viewers are taken as IQ like those naive FLs in CEO dramas. I'll just point out some parts.
~Identical Twins:
The most important part of the drama is biologically impossible. How on the earth twins with a different gender are identical? There is only one case possible but then girls always have turner syndrome. Oh, please don't tell me about sesquizygotic twins they only share 50% DNA so they can be half identical.. or identical as babies but not as growing teens. (Sorry for starting biology class here.) Though I was impressed by Choi Myung Bin I can't let it slide how illogical it is.
~Sexual Orientation:
First I do not have a problem with the concept of love without thinking of gender, or loving person/human. But I'm very disappointed how sensitive issues like this are handled carelessly in the drama. Ji Woon was more bothered that he fell in love with CP than the fact that CP is a man.. damn how can he not question himself for a single time that his first love was a girl how his preference change overnight.. then he starts to imagine Lee Hwi as a girl, but then says he likes her as a person, not gender.. damn what a mess? I mean we have seen Han Gyul (Coffee Prince) getting tormented in the twenty-first century... we like talking about Joseon Era, but no the male lead should be perfect he shouldn't question his love... even if it looks way unrealistic.
~Attack on CP:
In the envoy drama that happened, his guard u̶n̶intentionally attacked Lee Hwi and he just gets away with it.. okay it that possible? first, it was clear that the attack was intentional but even if it was unintentional how can a mere guard get away after attacking the CP of the nation... it's a very big thing.
The story itself is grand as cross-dressing is on a big level... it's not like she's dressing as a man to become Eunuch, or to get in school or university but as the future king of the nation which is a big thing.
Romance is bland, politics completely sucks... action, is there any? just some bits. The writing is inconsistent, it lacks substance. The king's affection is an absolute example of lazy writing with poor characterization. I was hoping for some great, well-written politics, mind games...Politics, what can I say? probably all budget went over a shot of Rowoon carrying flowers around the palace... as I have never seen court this empty with just a few ministers (sometimes it suddenly has a lot of ministers)... with only 2-3 who can talk. but not it has nothing to offer. I don't think this setup needed 20 episode format as most of the part feels like filer.. even the main thing romance. Love-pentagon most unnecessary thing, it doesn't even create that much tension it should have.
The most problematic character of the series is the male lead Ji Woon.. no it's not like he's a douchebag or something.... he's clueless, legit he has no freaking purpose for his existence other than being a love interest of Lee Hwi. He's a typical nice, goofy guy who does nothing but fangirl over Lee Hwi for half of his screentime. His character is written one-dimensionally... there's nothing particularly interesting in him that makes me root him with Lee Hwi lol
Lee Hyun is more interesting than Ji Woon.. at least he is three-dimensional with different shades, he's not that nice guy all time but can take action when it's needed. I liked Ga On from the very start he has that mysterial aura around him.. that made me take interest in him, generate curiosity about his back story.. and I was waiting for that BIG revelation all time, then when it happened it all goes flat. All mystery they tried to create.. and what was delivered is a disappointment, but I'm very glad they didn't drag him in love-pentagon to make it hexagon. I like So Eun but she has a very bad first impression... It took me forever to get warm with her due to it, but then I adored her. Ha Kyung clumsy, little stupid girl... she's the only person with whom I sympathies in the whole thing, coz she's nothing but an innocent, pure soul who got dragged into this mess... just coz she loved a man, who's not a man.
The best thing about the drama is Eun Bi, she's phenomenal... the Lee Hwi she portrayed was charming. Most of the time voice is neglected in cross-dressing dramas, but we can see Eun Bi also worked on her voice so that she can sound like a guy. This is one of the very few believable gender-benders where FL can pass as a boy... yes her weight, height is not ideal for the role but the body language, her presence, the way she acts... make her perfect for the role.
I adore and respect Lee Hwi, this character had so much potential (kinda wasted with romance)... there were many changes to how she can be a great, wise king but fewer actions prove that. The character growth was less explored due to induced fluff. In more than one half of the drama, she doesn't have a purpose why she remains as CP, king is a good person so power isn't in the hand of the wrong people... but her king gonna lead her grandfather to get power and her becoming pawn in power play. And it's not like that many people's lives are on skate as other than Eunuch and Court lady no one knows her secret. When she gets purpose... as the story forwards it's already too late coz drama has lost its charm.
Music is forgettable... it's high-quality production serving great visuals but the color scheme is bright, not ideal for watching on the big screen as it's too bright.
Don't bother if you are expecting great Sageuk with the realistic portrayal, action as most of the time it's just filer romance with lack of chemistry (I just don't feel anything for this couple) and try to disguise with some bits of action here and there splattered. Apart from Eun Bi and her Lee Hwi, nothing is amazing or mesmerizing... it's only grand with the name and set up but everything is just mediocre.
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This review may contain spoilers
Lacks depth and substance
This drama takes on a very serious and nuanced topic -- marriage and divorce. Unfortunately, instead of leaning into all the difficult issues surrounding a failing marriage and dealing with them head-on, it skirts around all the important parts and instead delivers nothing more than Hallmark-type cheesiness without any real substance. A lot of people are saying it was good up to Episode 10 or so and then went downhill. But for me it was downhill, or flat, from the get-go. I don't really get what all the hype is about. Frankly, despite the fact that I love Kim Soo-hyun, I did not enjoy this drama, for several reasons.1. Supposed to deal with marriage and divorce but fails to get into the real issues. This multilayered topic needs to be handled with maturity, depth, and honesty, and this drama just fails in that regard. While we are led to understand it was just a simple case of miscommunication (or lack of communication) between the leads that led them down the dark road to divorce, this matter is never really fleshed out or given any further treatment. We are not really made privy to what really happens between them. There is one scene that deals with a miscarriage, but that's it. No context or follow-up is given and it is hardly ever mentioned again. In other words, there is a lack of context and story development to enable the viewer to participate and empathize. The drama instead chooses to focus on external conflicts with one-dimensional, cartoonish villains. The failing marriage is dealt with shallowly and romanticized, and the real issues are swept under the rug. Suddenly, this couple has the perfect relationship and their only problems are actually how to recovery the company and vanquish the baddies.
2. Unlikable characters, especially in the first half. In the beginning, the ML seems to have been made deliberately weak. I felt like the drama was pushing some sort of feminist rhetoric -- subversion of the patriarchy and all that. But there is no need to emasculate the male in order to emphasize the strength of the female. Likewise, the female need not be an uber rich girl boss with a bad attitude in order to come off as a "strong independent woman." Anyway, Baek Hyun-woo is introduced as a seemingly shallow, silly, ill-intentioned weakling who could not even stand up for himself or make up his mind about what to do with his own marriage. He relies on a friend to tell him what to do. To make things worse, he actually seems relieved and even slightly elated to learn his estranged wife is terminally ill. Now, I like falling in love with my kdrama/jdorama men for the space of a few hours, and I definitely was not going to fall in love with someone like this. Neither could I relate with the wealthy CEO girl boss who was cold and arrogant and disrespectful and had no qualms about berating her husband in front of their colleagues. It just wasn't working for me. Even later when her arrogance is toned down, Hae-in just comes off to me as abrasive and unrelatable. Many people are saying the leads had great chemistry, but I never saw it. They're both great actors for sure, but there was something off for me about their pairing. Strangely, I felt like the FL was patterned after the typical Asian mom or aunt -- brash, brisque, pragmatic and unromantic, and the ML has the typical henpecked husband vibe. And their romance felt to me like I was watching one of my stoic aunts suddenly becoming lovey-dovey with someone. Goosebumps. But because the actors are both attractive, it probably seemed that the characters were attractive too. The writers seem to realize this and tones down everything in the second half, which leads to my third point:
3. Inconsistent characterization. I guess the writer wanted to show that the characters have a deeper dimension than what was shown in the first episodes, but somehow the sudden shift in the overall tone of the characters didn't work for me. Suddenly, the FL is vulnerable and in love (but still, just for me personally, unlikable and unrelatable). Suddenly, she is a silly lovelorn stalker. I mean, sure. One can argue that her coldness and arrogance were merely a facade or a coping mechanism and that she actually really is a softie, but somehow, that doesn't feel believable. And the ML suddenly becomes strong, capable, fiercely loyal, very loving, and knows exactly what he wants and what to do. Yes, writer-nim. This could have worked if you had written him that way from the beginning. Making a character's real personality a plot twist just does not work for me. I need to connect with the characters immediately or as soon as possible for the story to work. That is the most important factor for me in any story. The plot could go to hell but as long as the characters are well-written and feels real, I am in. I think it just is bad writing overall, the way the characters were set up. Again, the actors' face cards and sex appeal covered this up for most viewers.
4. The drama can't seem to decide what it is, and the main relationship lacks substance. In the beginning, it seemed like it was going to be a romcom. But wait, Is it a thriller? Is it a makjang? Is it a "beautiful love story?" It tries to be all of these but fails. The thriller part wasn't thrilling enough. The romance part was, to me at least, somewhat cringey (probably because of the Asian mom/ahjumma peronality of the FL). And the romcom just failed to show up. Instead, the drama seems to take itself very seriously and seems to think of itself as a "beautiful love story. " In order to show this, it resorts to cheesy lines and overly sentimental scenes that don't really show any real connection between the husband and wife, at least none that you could really feel or that is properly developed. Instead, their strongest and most powerful connection seems to be the dreaded "childhood connection thingie" that Koreans seem to adore -- unmyeong. In other words, their love is one for the books because they were fated for each other, as evidenced, apparently, by the fact that they had a chance encounter when they were children. This is a pet peeve of mine in kdramas. This is a very shallow type of sentimentality, IMO. Instead of trying to establish this childhood connection, why not focus on their current mind-to-mind, heart-to-heart, soul-to-soul connection instead?
5. The loopholes. In a romcom, I usually could look past the glaring leaps of logic because most romcoms are meant to be a little silly, and so the logical inconsistencies just seem campy, not a writing failure. But you can't really call campy on this drama because it takes itself way too seriously. One major example of a glaring lapse in logic is the fact that the villain manages to step in and claim to be the guardian and fiance of a patient who has lost her memory. What an insult to European hospitals! You're telling me, writer-nim, that the hospital does not have any protocols at all regarding patient security? Furthermore, Baek Hyun-woo actually sees the villain walk in as he was being scandalously arrested (another huh moment). And he doesn't do anything about it, apparently. Yes, he got arrested and dragged away to prison on false charges, but that should not have prevented him from instructing one of his lawyer friends (or hello, Hae-in's family) to immediately contact the hospital and inform them that that man should not be allowed anywhere near the patient as he is not family and not her authorized guardian. And why didn't Hae-in's parents, on their own initiative, do anything? A phone call would have done it if they didn't want to fly out to Germany to look after their daughter. They knew than man is dangerous and Hae-in is in an especially vulnerable position after having lost her memories, and not a single one of them tried to contact the hospital? LOL. There are many, many others. This is just one example. Very shoddy writing.
To sum up, again, this drama tries to be something -- an epic, sweeping, memorable, beautiful love story, or a deep dive into marriage and divorce -- but does not really have enough meat and bones/substance to actually succeed. Instead, we get a lot of cloyingly sentimental scenes, cheesy dialogue, a half-baked thriller element, and a kind of surface treatment of a serious topic that is more suited to a romcom or light drama, and a dancing or skirting around the important issues about love and hate in a relationship and all the nuances and layers of emotion that are involved in a marriage, and all the heartbreak of divorce. This weird, half-baked stew just didn't work for me at all. The actors did their best to hold it up, but it is not worth all the hype and is way too overrated, in my honest opinion.
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IT'S A CANNONBALL
Firstly, there are tropes you'll agree with me are made for some countries and just incase another country adopts it even if by chance and executes it well enough, that's going a bit higher and matching up to a standard. Originally Thai BL'S from being as scanty as 15 shows annually between 2018-2021, every trope was good enough because for the first time it felt new since we were having BL couples instead of heterosexual ones but after that 2022-2023 was a massive wave of close to 80+ BLS in each. The exposure was good but it seemed that some plots either felt too bland, some actors aren't the right choices for the shows or simply, BL fans are getting bored and we are looking for something unique.Here is THE SIGN. First and foremost, the fact that this is the first Thai BL original that deals with Special forces was enough to intrigue me and just as I had mentioned that I felt this kind of plot had become more of a western monopoly a part of me was rather eager. The trailer delivered it well to have me quite expectant but after watching the first episodes I say the long uneasy wait was worth it. Of course the Special Investigation Forces part of it might feel unreal and rather having it too easy if you're to compare with Western Series like FBI and GANG RELATED. No offense, for Thailand I do respect that they could take this gr8 shot and it doesn't bother me that much since it was never the gist of the story so it didn't occupy space unnecessarily.
Also considering the fact that we are moving out of the bedrooms and condos and getting more into the real adult world. I felt that highschoolers and campusers had overdone it and for some reason high school and university settings were making the BL STORYLINES lose an aroma. We have seen from Until We Meet Again back in 2019 the notion of lost lovers but never a profound and rather intensely chaotic couple like Celestial lovers who were never meant to be which makes the sign yet another one of those BL series that is exceptional.
I equally came to admire the fact that the character design here is quite mature and we are moving away from some stupid couple fights which were starting to get annoying to some point. We have seen love that challenges gender and social norms in my perspective but never one which challenges religious ones like the Sign which I had always anticipated at some point. The Lovestory of Billy and Babe unlike many challenges what you would considered some of the most powerful cosmic forces in existence.
Thirdly, finally beating an office romance, you’ll find out from this show how it is very cute when a special agent is playing hard to get and another is practically a naive big baby that's struggling at expressing themselves. Of course even if there is a progression of feelings, the top knotch of this chemistry is that two people with different personalities start to create a common ground for intimacy
New faces and ships to the genre who have gotten their jobs right is also the real deal, I don't believe that being a rookie actor justifies one to be a bad actor and in any case The Sign proves it right. Everyone seems to comprehend, fit in their role and even grow in it with literally every scene that it starts to feel more like a sincere portrayal than a very flat pretense. I have seen series that have gone South when they could have been better because of this annoying excuse.
Besides, the Supernatural fantasy in a cop drama hits different and right, Billy literally flirts the scene well and quite unobviously which keeps the show interesting, these guys are so past the point of stereotyping gay couples as sweet people with nothing to do, for once I feel a gay couple has real work to do in line with promoting law and order now you get to see them in action and in a way even offering a civil service apart from struggling with anger issues, overkissing and I think I literally LMAO at the fact that these guys each had way many sex dreams or thoughts.
All in all the pacing of the series seems quite right and after all this I can certainly say, coming from Thailand, they have found a way to end the year and begin a new one in style by giving us a show that is quite unique and hints on personal and spiritual diversities which have been confined to perfection and give us an unspoken warmth, sweetness despite the cruel designs of the world, fate and karma which make you see how every character lives every day as if it were their last.
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2This review may contain spoilers
Marvellous masterpiece: 3 lifetimes 3 magnificent stories of main leads
It's one of my most anticipated fantasy and romance drama, I couldn’t be more happier when it was released. Ever since it has been released, I have been deeply engrossed and always excitedly waiting for next highly spell- bindind, gripping and mesmerising episodes.💫The story of the drama is extremely refreshing and highly unpredictable yet it successfully enthrals, fascinates, engages, entrances and enchants the audiences with its extraordinary and unique top-class and out of this world plot💥💯. One of the noticable features of this storyline is time cycle encounters (where she learns about past lives). It's neither simple straight timeline nor just a circle. The main characters are influenced by irregular timelines, their identities and circumstances change in each life time. These encounters allows them to meet and confront each other. At certain points, the main leads loose their original memories in past lives. However, very importantly, XY's final time jump to place where she met HY in the demon valley, is completely different from previous time. In the last encounter, both of them have the knowledge of their previous lives ✨️.
💫Hong ye is highly complex and intricate character portrayed brilliantly, magnificently and impeccable by phenomenal actor HMH. Although, Hong ye at present is very morally good, just, kind, smart and responsible demon lord, he doesn't have the commanding aura of a formidable demon king, showing self-blame, repentance, and a deep internal struggle as he has yet to rediscover his true self. Fortunately over time, particularly after meeting Xiao Yao, he gradually reconnects with the bold, trusting, fearless, extremely formidable and unrestrained version of himself that existed centuries ago. I absolutely adore Hong Ye, I love his extremely sweet, protective, romantic, mischievous (influenced by Xiao yao), strategic, playful, kind, bold, reflective and righteous sides. He is extremely precious demon, who is XY's treasure. He has stolen my heart ✨️❤️🔥.
💫Xiao Yao is also very complicate and sophisticate character, portrayed flawlessly and effortlessly by versatile actress TSY. Xiao Yao (half demon and half human) in her original third lifetime is very special person, who has very pure and incorruptable heart despite being of very explorative, mischievous, jolly, and tricky nature. She always stays true to her heart and sticks to her moral principles. Always be kind, friendly, playful, just and protective of all beings around her whether they are humans or demons. Although she likes money, she always uses it for proper needs and is never blinded by greed or desire of extreme power or immortality. Xioa Yao with her untarnished beautiful heart molds and influences the opinions and principles of many demons, spirits and humans during her exciting journey together with Hong Ye in 3 lifetimes. I absolutely love her cute, adorable, bubbly, flirty, calculative, tactical, prudent, combative, witty, romantic, wise and thoughtful sides. She is very lovable and unforgettable character, she has won my heart 🥰🔥.
💫Hong Ye and Xiao Yao, through the 3 lifetimes encounters, always triggers long standing conflicts between humans and demons. We are shown through many stories, how desires, trust and moral choices effects the fates of both races. However, Xiao Yao's pure heart becomes a crucial power that drives the story toward reconciliation and redemption. Thus, making this drama different from conventional romance yet the 3 life time romance we experience between Hong Ye and Xiao Yao is extremely remarkable and heart-warming. Their chemistry feels incrediblly natural and romantic. Hong Ye is always extremely accommodating, malleable, attentive, soft, tender and protective to Xiao yao. Same goes for Xiao yao she is extremely observant of Hong yes's hidden feelings and worries, does anything to protect and help him and is always concerned for him. Their romance is extremely sweet, intimate, synchronized and natural, sending viewers hearts into total frenzy✨️💖.
💫Not forgetting to mention, whenever, they have misunderstanding or disagreement they very quickly, effectively and proactively resolve it in best way possible, which very beautifully brings them even closer. Every trial or event bonds them together more firmly then ever. They trust, rely, and protect each other no matter what. Through out the 3 life times ardous journey, these two have created really powerful feelings and overwhelming emotions, which have greatly moved me. Both of them are striving towards establishing peace for humans and demons by employing their responsible, righteous, courageous and selfless hearts to attain this dream/goal.
I have completely melted 💘🫠 for this breath-taking, very compatible and beautiful unforgettable couple. They are totally made for each other.
💫All the others actors have also enchanted me with their brilliant, dynamic, dedicated, committed, creative and powerful acting. They have displayed their deep emotions, passion, feelings flawlessly and their stories unfolded magnificently and seamlessly well with good pacing. Their dynamic and smooth chemistry with each other and the main characters brought this masterpiece to life. The short stories were very touching and engaging endorsing the hearts with meaningful messages about making the right choice under various circumstances while always rememberering that demons and humans have good and bad people amongst them.
BZ's character development started out well, with him and his sister standing up for their principles while learning to distinguish between good and bad demons. But sadly he seems to have lost his way along the way for quite some time due to PP's predicamen. Thankfully, he got his sister back and redeemed himself. Now, for the other characters: my personal favorite are XM the cat demon, LL the pig demon, the little herbs and Bamboo demon. They are very adorable and funny, there is never a dull moment with them around. The 3 great demons, were at times very adorable, chaotic, intriguing and funny. However, they made HY and humans suffer a lot, they got chance to change their ways and later they paid for their mistakes with their lives.
💫The CGI, FX and cenimatrography of this drama is incredibly beautiful and stunning💞🔥!The attention to detail, photorealism, seamless integrations, lighting and texturing makes geographical lands in the story enchanting and magical. The CGI in this drama not only gave us compelling visual experience in the action scenes but it effectively communicated the stories and emotions of the characters too. It successfully engages the viewers and leaving an everlasting impression. The gorgeous costumes, stunning hairstyles and mesmerising make up for the casts is breathtaking making the drama very enticing and inviting visual feast. But it's not just the visuals that stand out, all the OSTs especially the opening OST 'desire and calamity' and 'afraid it's only a dream' are extremely beautiful. They have emotional resonance, clear production, and originality. All OSTs give emotional and atmosphereic depth to the scenes and and events.
💫I absolutely fell in love with this most magical, sweetest, beautiful, adorable and naturally romantic couple. With their superb acting, they have manifested one of the top-class heart warming, touching, emotional, magical, romantic and unforgettable Xuanhuan ever for me. Looking forward to next episodes very eagerly. Only downside is that the episodes are coming to an end and I absolutely don't want it to finish because I just can't get enough of this enchanting unique magical story.
ENDING:
It seems that the main leads have achieved their major goal of bringing lasting peace to both races. Everyone, who has made bad moral choices either got retribution and paid for their sins some way or repented and redeemed themselves. Eventually, the vicious cycle of voilence and revenge between demons and humans was broken. Ofcourse, 10,000 years of chaos and feud came to an end with price of selfless acts of bravery.
Even though the end was little ambiguous, I find it totally worth the watch beacause there is really nothing HY and XY didn’t do together as a couple in 3 lifetimes.
✨️With XY (having special body) mastering the art of time travelling, I guess she can relive the numerous happiest times with HY in 3 lifetimes while correcting the mistakes made before or possibly find another way to seal the kunlun mirror! Possiblities are endless when she can travel any point into past and can change anything and this time she knows everything!✨️💞
☆⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝☆
✨️Any point she jumps to is a new beginning!!
"Everything has started anew"
"Everything is just a beginning"
✨️Thus, this timeline is not a never-changing cycle, nowhere it says that everything repeated the way it was.
🌈Looking at the last seen: both XY's and HY's aura was different from the original scene because both of them know and remember everything this time around and are about to start a new. It's already a chance to change everything. 🎊
🌟So, it's Not a repeat But a Reset!!!💕💯⭐️
Overall, I thorougly enjoyed every second of this masterpiece 😍 ✨️ 👌 I highly recommend it to people who love fantasy and romance.
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1DESIRE HAS ITS PRICE
There’s something so deeply unhinged about watching Yun and Won sit there and basically go, “You know what would be fun? Destroying this woman’s life for entertainment.” Like hello??? Hui-yeon has already lost her husband before they were even married and these two looked at her situation and decided it was apparently the perfect opportunity for a little recreational emotional terrorism.And what makes it worse is that neither of them is exactly doing this because they’re happy. Won is desperate for Yun, Yun is miserable and completely trapped in a life where she has basically zero control over anything, and instead of either of them dealing with their actual problems like normal people, they decide to turn someone else’s feelings into a board game. Incredible coping mechanisms all around.
But honestly, that’s what makes the premise work for me. The wager isn’t really about seduction. It’s about control. These people live in a society where they’re constantly being told who they’re supposed to be, what they’re allowed to want and how they’re supposed to behave, so naturally they respond by becoming pathological little liars who manipulate everyone around them. Nobody says what they actually want. Nobody enters a relationship with completely honest intentions. Everyone is hiding something, and every time somebody thinks they’ve finally gained control, the situation immediately goes to hell.
And Hui-yeon is probably the most painful part of that whole mess because you KNOW she’s going to get hurt. You can see the disaster coming from approximately 18 miles away. You’re sitting there like GIRL PLEASE DO NOT FALL FOR THIS MAN. HE IS LITERALLY DOING A BET. But she has no idea, and watching her slowly become emotionally invested makes the whole thing increasingly uncomfortable. Especially because Won’s feelings start getting messier too, and suddenly the question isn’t just whether he’s manipulating her, but whether he has started believing his own bullshit.
Yun is also way more interesting than I expected her to be. She could’ve easily been written as the "Evil Seductress Who Starts The Bet And Smirks In A Corner" but there’s actually a person underneath all of it. The more we understand her history with Won and how little control she has over her own life, the more the wager starts feeling like this incredibly f***ed-up attempt to reclaim some kind of power. Not a healthy one, not even remotely. But you understand where it comes from.
And Son Ye-jin and Ji Chang-wook??? They are SICK for this. Their chemistry is genuinely ridiculous. The tension between Yun and Won does so much heavy lifting because these two can look at each other for five seconds and suddenly I’m sitting there like okay apparently we’re doing incestuous emotional warfare today. Nana is also really good, especially because Hui-yeon’s vulnerability could have easily become annoying or overly saintly, but she gives the character enough warmth that you actually feel awful watching her get dragged into this disaster.
The whole thing is also ridiculously pretty. Like everyone is committing emotional crimes against each other but at least the lighting department is having the time of their life. The drama has this dreamy, almost romantic visual quality that makes everything happening underneath it feel even nastier. You’re watching gorgeous people in gorgeous clothes ruin each other’s lives and somehow the show makes you want to keep pressing “next episode” like you’re not actively witnessing a social experiment conducted by demons.
My biggest problem is the pacing because JESUS CHRIST. This thing takes its time. And then takes some more time. And after that it apparently needs a little walk around the block before it decides to move the plot forward. There are stretches where the drama is clearly trying to build tension but instead of tension I’m just sitting there thinking okay girl we understand the point now. Some character decisions also feel suspiciously like the writers needed them to happen rather than something the actual characters would logically do, which does occasionally pull you out of the story.
But underneath all the scheming and seduction, there’s a genuinely sad story here about people who desperately want freedom and have absolutely no idea what to do with themselves when they can’t have it. They want control over their own lives, so they start controlling everyone else’s. They want to be loved, so they manipulate people into loving them. They want freedom, so they make other people pay for the fact that they don’t have it.
And eventually the funniest part of the whole wager is that nobody actually wins. Because once real feelings start getting involved, the entire game becomes completely useless. You can manipulate somebody into falling in love with you, but you can’t control what happens to you when you start falling in love too. And THAT is where this drama gets really good.
Full review coming soon! Stay tuned.
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