Reviews

disgusting who fucking wrote this shit potential lost

The first issue in this movie is that it makes the ml seem like this pitiful sad old man who just wants family and this sick deranged relationship is justified and that they are fated together.
When he literally just stole a kid who is vulnerable with no family to sexually abuse. here we have it shes around 8 or 10 and it makes it seem like she instigated a romantic relationship with her supposed father then we have this bitch ass uncle who had a feeling this guy was not fit to raise a kid and instead of taking the child quickly out of the environment when seeing such horrific things he dilly dallys and gets his ass killed now this fuck ass officer goes to the murderers home alone with the last bit of evidence instead of police. cherry on top he also blames the child and not the pedophilic abusive father who the film now makes it seem like he defended his child/lover and she basically pushed him to do something like that.... which the show basically allows for her to be blamed making her seem like an active participant and not a victim really takes away from real life abuse because they are depicting something deep and evil that actually happens like dark romance... then she grows up and they solidify this rehtoric that she seduced this grown ass man with the leg thing at the end. seriously skip the watch if you dont want to eat misogynstic and down right disrespectful propoganda ;)

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"The Americans have nuclear weapons, we have netizens!"

Way Back Home was based on the real life experiences of Jang Mi Jeong and her family. The film admitted to creative license for dramatic affect which didn’t seem necessary with this story and the film ran long. However, it was an amazing insight into how quickly people’s lives can come crashing down and how little government bureaucracy cares.

Song Jung Yun and her husband Kim Jong Bae have a four-year-old daughter and opened their own car repair shop. Their world seems bright and secure. In one moment, it comes crashing down when a friend’s business collapses and it turns out Jong Bae had cosigned the loan with predatory interest rates. The small amount quadruples sending the family to a leaky basement apartment and closes their business. When it appears they could end up on the street Jung Yun accepts a job from another friend to transport uncut gemstones from Guyana to France. She’s stopped at the airport in Paris only to discover she has transported 30 kg of cocaine into the country. Labeled a drug smuggler she is given almost no help from the Korean Embassy or the French government. Drug dealers aren’t allowed phone calls and she can be held in prison for up to 2 years without a trial. She ends up in a prison in Martinique in the Caribbean, half a world away from home and the Korean Embassy with no translators and no idea what is going on.

This story was a cautionary tale about financial and social naivete. Co-signing a loan you can’t easily cover is always a dangerous move no matter how much you like someone. Especially, when you don’t understand the fine print. Jung Yun had a suitcase that weighed almost as much as she did. I wouldn’t carry my best friend’s purse through customs much less a mystery suitcase from a shady businessman.

The story was also a lesson in how little government bureaucracies care about little people. Jung Yun made a stupid mistake, but when her ignorance came to light, the people she counted on for her trial and freedom dropped the ball. And when called on it, threatened her. Sounds about right. I’ve yet to see a film where the Minister of Foreign Affairs was ever shown in a positive light. Prison was also expensive, something the family hanging on the edge of a cliff could ill afford. Thank goodness for the press and netizens! Netizens can do a lot of damage but in this case they rallied for good!

Jeon Do Yeon gave a stunning performance as Jung Yun and Go Soo came through solidly as Jong Bae. Much of the movie was filmed in the Dominican Republic and at a prison which gave it a realistic feeling. There were overly melodramatic moments in a story that was already heart tugging as it was. As much as I enjoyed the film it was overly long, after an hour of pain and frustration I realized there was over an hour more to go. Jung Yun and Jong Bae persisted when others may have faltered and their “stubbornness” helped save her life, no thanks to the Korean Embassy.* A difficult film to watch, but worth it if you can stick with it.

14 August 2026

Trigger warning: Attempted sexual assault

Spoilery comment below:















* I truly hope the Embassy workers were actually reassigned to places without three star Michelin restaurants. I only wish the family could have sued them for negligence.

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Oh, boy.... Higher budget (maybe), yet it became even worse

Thanks to the high ratings, this new season got some extra cash I guess. A lot of things are of a higher quality, not always, but they do exist. Unfortunately, the sht is still there...

Visuals. It started with some good cinematography. A couple of different colour palettes, to give us different aspects of storytelling. Even the fight choreography got an upgrade. But then, it went back to meh. Weird camera spinning. Some of the VFX are terrible, mostly when its about scaling them correctly. You get a shot of the MC, some drones behind him, drones that look like (and later we do find out/see it) they have the length of a human torso, then the angle changes and they have a different size. Stuff like that. And no, its not nitpicking, it means the extra budget wasn't well-spent.
Audio. The sound design might be considered good. It has a few terrible choices, such as the track with the annoying beat that also plays at a higher volume so you must keep your fingers on it and keep adjusting it. But overall, good sound design, especially for the tense scenes. It really helps in getting you hooked.
The editing is kinda meh, all over the place. Sometimes good, sometimes it ends the scene too fast... The pacing is also meh. It started ok, but then.. Well, you know... Life happens or something. The world building is minimal but you don't really need it anyway. High production value. And it shows? Well, yes, sometimes it does.

Now the "good" stuff. For the most part, the cast was good. Even some nice chemistry. And the JP team was phenomenal in terms of acting. They really felt like professionals and that they were a team for the last maybe 10 years. I even loved their personalities. Oh, even the old JP gang that appears for just 2 min, in ep 5 I think, yep, even those felt like real people. And the charisma between them ofc. Back to the rest of them. Meh. A mix of meh and very good acting. Also, just a personal thing, but I hated the new young boy. The acting, his role, everything.
Moving on. Some decent character development, but also character assassination. Well played! While the first season had a silly story, at least there was some character work going for it. But now, it all went down the drain. The writer thought he was being cheeky, he tried some "omg" moments, but in fact, it was just sht writing, petty tricks meant to get a reaction from the viewer.
Nice segue, if I say so myself. The writing is horrible. Full of plot holes, plot contrivances, exposition dialogue, villain monologue, plot devices meant solely for artificial pay-offs, red herring, and so on and so on. Everything is meant to push the plot forward in the direction that the writer wills it, no matter if it makes sense or not, if a character would do such a thing or not. And after figuring out its "play", it was easy to guess how the events will unfold. Not everything, obviously. But when something weird was happening on screen, I could guess the general idea as to why, what it was intended to happen next.
A personal opinion: when the new season started, I kinda liked what was happening, I genuinely thought it got better. Then crazy and dumb sht happens and I realised that it wont. Then, the JP enter the stage and again I liked what I saw and I hoped for some things to happen, I started to write a scenario with them in mind. A good one I mean. But with each passing minute, when the stuff happening got dumb and dumber, and sh***ier, I knew then and there that it will be bad. But I had no idea HOW bad.

So, when the new season started, I had some ideas for the story, how it should go. Now that she knew, obviously, you need a time skip and training montage. Teaching her basic and superficial stuff while she has no idea? OK, then now she must learn everything she can, asap. Right? Well, I wont spoil it for you, you have to suff-- ahem, you'll have to watch and figure it out yourself, too. So, I hit play and hoped for the best. It started OK, or at least it was enjoyable. After the initial 20-30 min or so, it became the usual slop. The episode 2 happens, more nonsense. Then the 3rd one, even more nonsense. No, not even the JP team (that I loved) couldn't help me in enjoying it more. Yes the episode starts ok, but the ending is horrible. Many times have I yelled "shut the fk up, you dumb b**ch", no matter who it was that was talking. Because, surprise, the dialogue is sht. And the quality will never get better.
Then ep 4 happens. Cheap melodrama. When it happened, I knew what the next thing will be, Why it was there like that. Is it sad (maybe "sad" is too much)? Sure. And it took me by surprise. Because I thought they'd use it better, not just going for the cheap tricks. My bad, dunno why I was having such high opinions about them. But before that, the next scenes were decent, apart from fight choreography and decisions. Those were NOT moves of super mega, high efficient, OP soldiers, with their background. And THEN it gets to the dumb "plot-twist" that I knew it was coming. Ep 5 has sht and dumb dialogue, again. But it also had that 1-minute scene, with the old JP "grandpa" that had higher gravitas than all the supporting cast before. And he only has like 2-3 lines... Episode 6 was full of dumb-fk actions. All the characters became re****ed because the script needed them to be, so that the plot could happen. Starting with episode 7, I was just waiting for it to end. No matter what happened on screen, I couldn't care less. The drama: "Sad things happening... sad music... see? Its sad. Be sad". Me: "Fk off. Where's that damn playback speed settings?" So, yeah. The rest went by faster (because of me, not because the pacing got better). I already knew what the general plot lines will be, how the writer will make usage of them, so the last hour went by smoothly. Nothing special, everything sht.

And now you know. This story exists only because "it just so happened that...*insert random motive*", times 4. Coincidences do exist, do happen. But forcing 4-5 of them at the same time? Thats just lazy (or sht) writing. For example, lets say you work in a high-lvl bio research facility. And, while in a biosafety/hazmat suit, you open you visor to eat a chocolate candy bar and you drop the wrapper on the floor. That wrapper gets sucked into the door's intern mechanisms, that creates a short-circuit and a fire, that creates an error into a computer that, for some abstract (and dumb) reason was programmed to open all the doors. Into a building full with species, predatory species btw, that you experiment on. And just for the fun of it and to make it even more "whoa", lets make those animals something really really mean. Oh, and big. Yeah, lets make them.. dinosaurs! Ofc, such a movie doesn't exist. Just imagine doing a movie with such a sh***y idea, the reason for all of it to happen being a series of random coincidences. Yep, that will never happen ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

So, the technical aspects did got some upgrade, but overall, it got worse. While the first season had sht dialogue and the logic behind the action was lacking, you could put it all on her, saying she's a noob, only a few pro helpers etc. But now? You have a whole fking cast of mega op soldiers. On both sides, mind you. Every action, every thought should be full with high efficiency in mind. But nope. And the dialogue is soooooooo re***ded that will make you blink and look again. "I was living a normal life" (when in fact she did everything possible to not interact with anyone, do not create any relations. Only in the last 3 weeks she did something more). Or "He took the first step and shut down the website. He really wants a truce with us.... I do only whats best for the company. He did that of his own accord. He should hunt him down". So, he wants a ceasefire, so he took something to force you into it, he has the upper hand (the info) in the negotiations and he chose to make something self-damaging as a show of good faith. You do everything for the sake of the company, so your first thought is to hunt him down, when he could go public at any moment? What??? How the fk is that a logical thing? And why is no one asking her how is that making any sense in what she just said? And thats just about the logic behind their words/actions. There's also "evilman dialogue", while laughing. I'm not being cheeky. That person is telling outloud all the evil plans that happened or that will happen, while laughing maniacally. And not just once. I know its hard to believe, to imagine it... But it really is in this drama. And those are just some tiny examples of sht dialogue. It goes on and on and on and on.... Also, they have drones and robots that can withstand a blast, and super mega shields... Omg, I forgot about those shields... Those are the same as the suits in John Wick Universe, a bad plot device that will destroy any story-telling. If you have access to those, just send 1000 of them. Done. The whole drama will end in 5 minutes. *sigh* How could I forget about those? *double-sigh*

The absolute only good thing in this season was the JP team. And more specifically, the actress named Q in the drama (dunno her name), was phenomenal. Fantastic work. Its been a moment since I last saw such an amazing performance. When she's happy, funny, cheeky, sad, everything. Even her fight choreography was enjoyable even good. Now, if the story would've been better, I would've rewatched it just to see her acting again.
Anyway. It gets a rating of 3. Mostly in regards of the JP cast, and some visuals. And maybe 2-3 character development. The story, the plot, the dialogue, everything in regards to that was sht. Not recommended, no rewatching value. I don't know if it will get a new season, but it might. The ending for the last one made sense to have a new one, but for this, who knows. I'm sure it will be praised a lot, because people still think that "enjoyment" = "good media".... So, yeey us.... *sigh*

Have a lovely evening.

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Very beautiful but a little shallow

Everything is beautiful in this show: the artistic direction, the costumes, the sets, the actors... I loved the direction, it felt like watching a movie.

Amongst the cast, Net and Kim distinguished themselves. They are both not only beautiful, but they also manage to convey very naturally the emotions of their characters. It was a pleasure to watch Net's soulfull eyes portray a myriad of emotions. JJ is fine, a little stiff from time to time, but he has pretty good chemistry with Net. Latte is so wooden when he plays Jom! He obviously struggled with the more emotional scenes.
But overall the cast is pretty good.

Unfortunately, the plot is quite bland and boring, be it in the present or the past. The characters don't realy evolve and never feel like real humans. There is little to no personal conflict, or, when there is, it felt contrived, with the characters changing their minds from one minute to the next.

As for the mystery surrounding Klao's father's death, it felt quite hollow. Klao/Nakun ignores obvious clues for the longest time, and then the show rushes to a reveal that felt out of left field.

The female characters were virtualy non existant. It's quite sad because the writers could have done something to make the plot more interesting by developping Lady Varna or Pim's stories.

I'm a bit ambivalent about the love scenes. They seemed a little tacked on and self indulgent, but they were also beautifully shot. I think they were just a little too long.

The show was pleasant to watch, but a bit disappointing plotwise given the obvious care for the production. Too bad.

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Not real sure why I didn’t enjoy this more…

When two people who hate each other are forced to get married & then become partners in solving cases, tensions rise & suspicion runs amok. Will this duo learn to trust & love one another or was their relationship doomed before it even began?

I want to be one of the majority who loved this drama, but sadly I’m in the minority instead. It’s not a bad drama, it just felt too long for me. It started off really good but lost my interest about halfway through. It could’ve been 10-15eps shorter & still told the full story with a whole lot less drama. Like that for-her-good breakup plot? That made no sense to me after everything the Leads had already endured together!

Top things I didn’t like:
- annoyingly delulu SML - dude, she’s married so stop trying to be a homewrecker! 🤦🏻‍♀️
- FL’s sister’s shift - I liked her at first but how she was in the end? Pass!
- all the political drama? Nah.

Things I did like :
- the aloof ML falling for his quirky wife
- the touch-her-&-☠️vibes
- the FL realizing he’s actually good
- the he’s-mine-so-back-off stage
- their past connection
- their soul-deep goodness
- their sweet moments

I just wanted to watch the Leads go from sorta enemies to die-for-you lovers with less messy stuff, I guess. But I’m in no way saying skip the drama because TONS of other viewers absolutely loved it! Like I said, I’m in the minority here!! 🤪

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-⬇️ S P O I L E R S 🚫 B E L O W ⬇️-


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The things I always want to know 😏😉…
- First(real)Kiss : ep.25 💋
- Together : ep.25 👩🏻‍❤️‍👨🏻
- BreakUp: ep.36 💔
- BackTogether : ep.40 ❤️‍🩹

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Don’t Judge It by the Reviews — Decide for Yourself.

I see that a lot of people didn’t like the ending, but I personally really enjoyed "Royal Betrothal" Wu Jin Yan and Chen Zhe Yuan did a wonderful job with their roles — bravo! I genuinely enjoyed watching this drama.
And honestly, for me, it was a happy ending. In the final scene, they are riding horses together — they stayed together and are happy. For those who felt that a wedding was missing... we already had one in Episode 30! We got a beautiful ceremony and gorgeous wedding outfits. And at the end, we see them together again three years later, which is pretty common in dramas. What else was there really to show? Another wedding, children, and all their future family happiness? Well, maybe... 😄 But personally, I didn’t need that.
I love both of these actors, and for me, the chemistry was definitely there. The kiss was perfectly fine too, and I thought their acting was excellent. So I guess it really comes down to personal taste.

My advice: don’t let other people’s reviews decide whether you watch this drama. Watch it yourself and make your own judgment. There are plenty of hugely popular and heavily hyped dramas that I didn’t enjoy at all, while this one worked for me. I’m glad I watched it until the end.

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A Chinese Odysseus

At the time of my writing this review, The Odyssey by Cristopher Nolan is being mercilessly shoved down the throats of audiences around the world. There is so much hype in every type of media, old and new, that, short of living on a desert island, it is impossible to escape or ignore. Predictably, the film itself is a heavily Americanized affair, with little to offer other than pop psychology, high moral ground and some spectacular CGI. The nominal hero, in particular, is as about as different as he can be from the legendary Homer's hero. Instead of a silver-tongued master strategist, whose unparalleled wit and cunning indiscriminately won both battles and hearts, and whose unshakable sense of purpose could get temporarily sidetracked only by his own thirst for knowledge and unbeatable zest for life, Hollywood served us with yet another strong-and-silent type, a dour six-pack warrior riddled with moral pomposity and PDST.

It is therefore with particular delight and surprised joy that I found some of the classical Greek hero's more compelling attributes in the character of Gu Pingyuan, the protagonist of the Legend of the Magnate. Not unlike the original Odysseus, Gu Pingyuan is something of a reluctant hero. Although his personal ambitions and desires are modest in scope, he keeps getting sidetracked and thrown in the midst of high-stakes conflicts of every kind mostly because his unique capacity to solve them is patently obvious both to him and to everyone around him. His adventures take him to many places in China, central and off the map, and lead him to interact with people from all walks of life. (Humans only, though; no witches, gods or giants, at least not of the literal kind.)

That being said, I don't wish to push the comparison with Odysseus too far. For all the similarities between the two heroes - resourcefulness, eloquence, resilience - Gu Pingyuan is pointedly and quintessentially Chinese. His story unfolds in a specific time (the late Qing dynasty), in specific places across China (magnificently filmed on location) and in a specific social context (the four-class system on its last legs). His adventures may be larger than life, but they remain firmly grounded in the historical realities of the 19th century China.

Moreover, Gu Pingyuan is a master strategist who makes deals, not war. In this, he is the very opposite of any aristocratic epic hero. With his plebeian down-to-earth common sense, he loathes armed conflict and its devastating consequences for common people, himself included. He couldn't care less about conquering and vanquishing; he never seeks to crush his opponents into dust for so long as they can be reasoned with. Much like any ordinary person, all he aims for is a life of peace and prosperity. This, however, is easier said than done in a society dominated by hard power, weak institutions and systemic inequality. Born as a tea farmer, trained as a scholar, framed into exile and converted into a merchant, Gu Pingyuan is officially disgraced and socially misplaced. He can rely only on his prodigious wit to make his surroundings more livable for himself and people around him.

His quest inevitably pits him against all those who stand to profit from the imperial regime on the decline. In the course of his adventures, he gets to confront small-time local bullies, incompetent, overbearing and/or corrupt public officials, aristocrats too engrossed in petty rivalries to care about massive real-life consequences of their squabbles, disillusioned army generals, trade guilds stuck in their ways, heavyweight merchants seeking to unscrupulously hoard wealth in order to compensate for their lowly social status or their self-perceived lack of personal worth. He responds to those challenges with stratagems ingeniously designed to strike a balance between healthy self-interest and other people's needs. Nobody's perfect and everybody has their own burden to bear; the trick is to discover a mutual interest in helping each other out. Gu Pingyuan operates by managing to find common ground even with the least likely and most unlikeable of people. His business acumen stems from his extraordinary capacity to grasp different points of view and quickly come up with a deal satisfactory for most.

This emphatic, balanced and seductive approach to human dealings in general, and to business activity in particular, is systematically contrasted with uncontrolled accumulation of wealth, brutally facilitated by unfair practices and pushed beyond reason by insatiable lust for power. The clash of worldviews is the primary driving force behind the Legend of the Magnate. Its implications become more overtly geo-political in the later part of the drama, when Gu Pingyuan is forced to try and make a stand against the infamous East India Company, the biggest predator operating in China post-Opium Wars. He marks a point: but no single individual, no matter how brilliant, ultimately stands a chance against a gargantuan corporation already monopolizing more than half of global trade and habitually backing up its business propositions with a fleet of war ships. (Especially not, it is suggested, without any support from the decadent imperial regime.) Thus, Gu Pingyuan ends his astonishing career the same way he started it - officially in disgrace - but, miraculously enough, alive and kicking, and seemingly content to keep working in line with his egalitarian values off the main stage and behind the scenes,

The Legend of the Magnate is, beyond any doubt, a high-quality drama. It is well-written, fast-paced, visually breathtaking and superbly acted by Chen Xiao in the main role and a strong ensemble cast. The show invites us to step into a meticulously conceived and vividly rendered fictional world which, for all its authenticity and rich historical detail, can feel eerily contemporary. Indeed, one could have hoped that, by 21st century, humanity would have known better than to allow its 1% hog more than half of world wealth. For anyone who feels disheartened by the current state of global affairs, Gu Pingyuan's electrifying adventures will provide much jubilant amusement without the indulgence of total escapism. The multifaceted story and its ingenious hero are bound to be thoroughly and scrumptiously enjoyed by anyone looking for intelligent entertainment.

That being said, the drama is not without its weaknesses. First and foremost, in its final episodes, the story sacrifices some of its momentum to make a didactic point: namely, that it is necessary to overcome petty internal strife and stand united against the predatory dominion of the few over the many in order to make it possible for individuals and nations to live freely, prosperously and with dignity. The lesson is delivered obliquely, with internal strife taking the form of family melodrama. The result is underwhelming. Unhinged reactions by some otherwise sensible characters are bizarrely at odds with the general no-nonsense tone of the drama. The main plot remains fascinating in terms of political economy but, with the distraction of interpersonal turmoil, the finale feels too rushed to absorb all the facts in their complexity and consequently we don't get a full sense of closure. I am always sympathetic to any egalitarian cause and, considering what China when through during the "century of humiliation", I am prepared to be more tolerant of the patriotic propaganda than usual. Nevertheless, spectators could have and should have been trusted to get the point on the need for national and human brotherhood without making it quite so obvious.

The second weak point of the drama is the romance. Thankfully, the Legend of the Magnate is not short on strong female characters, who are all intriguing and/or likeable in their own way. However, possibly due to censorship or self-censorship issues, Gu Pingyuan's interactions with his prospective romantic interests feel inorganic and counter-intuitive.

This is most obviously the case when it comes to Gu Pingyan's official love story with the main female lead, Chang Yu'er. The girl is earnest and valiant - skilled in riding, shooting and martial arts - but young and illiterate. Beyond looking after our hero's bodily needs, such as nursing him back to life and acting as his bodyguard, she has very little to contribute to the story. Her sporadically showing up right on time to save her man is not entirely fortuitous: from their very first meeting, she chases after Gu Pingyuan with a disarmingly childish directness, never missing an opportunity to throw herself in his way and declare her heartfelt admiration. For his part, while he is deeply moved by her unflinching devotion and does not find her physically unattractive, he is reluctant to commit and only succumbs to her relentless advances after being put under severe social pressure from his business partners and allies. Settling down into a reasonably happy marriage of convenience grounded in mutual trust, loyalty and long-standing debts of gratitude is a historically realistic choice consistent with Gu Pingyuan's values. It is the attempt to masquerade the couple's relationship as a full-blown romance, in line with modern sensibilities, that feels unconvincing and half-hearted.

Much more engaging, if equally counter-intuitive, is Gu Pingyuan's volatile relationship with the protagonist who is clearly his female counterpart. A high aristocrat bent on a family vendetta against the corrupt regime, Su Zixuan sees life as a game of chess where she plays the queen and everybody else her pawn. With her imperious methods and her anti-imperial agenda, she makes a formidable antagonist but also an invaluable ally, always one step ahead in political scheming thanks to her sweeping eagle's eye perspective and intricate web of connections. Her deadly tug-of-war with Gu Pingyuan eventually eases into constructive collaboration and sibling-like affection, in line with the general moral of the story. The fact remains that the two are so uniquely matched in astuteness and charisma that their every encounter resonates with visceral intensity even with no violins in the background.

Romance is not the main dramatic focus of the story, so my peeves about our hero's love life shouldn't be taken too seriously. A secondary romance - a tragic love story between Gu Pingyuan's childhood fiancée and a rebel army general - is effectively used to illustrate and reflect on the horrors of civil war during the finals years of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom rebellion (1850-1871) and its complex political and economic background and implications.

In conclusion, the Legend of the Magnate is a tour de force which falls just a little short of being an absolute masterpiece. The drama had me riveted and left me with a deep long-lasting impression. In an era when sociopathic behavior seems to be on its way to becoming a new golden standard, and when money-mad moguls seem to be increasingly invading the global public sphere - not to mention the universe itself - I find it impossible not to feel dazzled by Gu Pingyuan's radically different focus and perspective. "A small man looks for profit, a big man seeks to enrich the world". Seventy percent scholar, thirty percent rogue, silver-tongued Gu Pingyuan is a dashing embodiment of a 'big businessman", which is actually the original title of the drama in Chinese. As far as I am concerned, if we can't have more men like him in real life then, by all means, let's at least have them in legends.

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Mix of Fantasy & Romance

I thoroughly enjoyed watching these Leads in a previous collaboration so I was quite excited to watch this one, but unfortunately I didn’t enjoy this nearly as much as their drama, “Moonlight”. *Note: if you’re disatisified with this one’s ending (typical of this genre), go watch that one! 😉

It’s not that this drama was bad, per se, I just felt like they didn’t allow the actors to show their full potential in the romance department. Like… where were the kisses?! They have great chemistry so I was simply disappointed that it wasn’t allowed to fully bloom like I know it can. If you don’t watch it as a romance fan, though, & only go in for the fantasy aspect you’d probably enjoy it more than I did.

Again, this is NO SHADE on the cast, they all played their roles very well. It simply didn’t satisfy the romantic in me. 💕

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The things I always want to know 😏😉…
- First(real)Kiss : None 🙅🏻‍♀️
- Together : ep.20 👩🏻‍❤️‍👨🏻
- BreakUp: Nope 💝

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That Shower Kiss if Famous for a Reason!

A producer & a part-timer participate in a “24-Hour Frozen Human” project, but instead of waking up in 1 day, they wake up 20 years later! 😱Now they need to adjust to their new reality where the world & everyone they know has aged 2 decades, while also have navigating the risks to their health from being frozen so long. As they work together to integrate back into their lives, love blooms unexpectedly. 💕

I enjoyed this drama for all it brings to the screen - humor, mystery, romance, low-key angst, & the contemplation of what it would be like to endure what this cast goes through. I laughed, I cringed, I swooned, & I cheered for these Leads as they faced the challenges together. They had such a great chemistry as co-workers/frenemies then as friends & confidants & finally as lovers who’d risk it all for each other. Their story is adorable & I’m glad I had the pleasure of watching it.

It’s definitely one I recommend for fans of kdrama rom-coms 🤗

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The things I always want to know 😏😉…
- First(real)Kiss : ep.7💋
- Together : ep.10 👩🏻‍❤️‍👨🏻
- BreakUp: Nope 💝

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Good for it’s genre

When a photographer returns to her hometown following a scandal she runs into her ex-boyfriend, rekindling the flames of romance. Can they clear the air & forgive past hurts or is their love destined to remain unfinished?

So, second-chance isn’t really a trope I enjoy because I want to see the couple fall in love & stay together rather than watch a couple who still loves each other refusing to just admit it, deal with the issues in the way, & get back together. With that being said, I love both the lead actors so I watched it anyway. And if you’re a fan of that trope, then this is definitely one to watch because it’s really well done.

And all the extra beauty of it is a bonus : the small town bond between the residents; the mother-daughter duo’s cuteness; the multiple love stories; the familial & friend loyalty; the baddies getting served some well-deserved karma. And, of course, the Leads have such a great bond & chemistry that you’ll enjoy their scenes. Everyone did really well in their roles!

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-⬇️ S P O I L E R S 🚫 B E L O W ⬇️-


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The things I always want to know 😏😉…
- First(real)Kiss : ep.7(past), ep.9💋
- Together : ep.14 👩🏻‍❤️‍👨🏻
- BreakUp: In past, not present 😅

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A Young Love that Lasts

A youth drama in which an adorably stubborn FL approaches the top student ML for a reason - inside him beats the heart of someone she loves! As they navigate school, exams, & a rapidly-approaching future will their mutual crush turn into shared love or will misunderstandings cause them to walk different paths?

Putting aside the few eps where the FL misjudged a situation & cut ties with the innocent ML (leaving him confused & heartbroken), I enjoyed this duo. Their high school antics & their college campus romance were filled with sweet moments. Just get through the short bit of messiness & enjoy them together 😉

As for the support cast, I wasn’t real impressed. The females in the friend group were really immature & toxic towards their love interests, imho, which made them unlikable for me. And the SML’s constant delusions & interference in the Leads’ relationship was extremely annoying. I’m never gonna root for people like that, I just can’t stand them 🤪 *the characters NOT the actors playing the roles!!*

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-⬇️ S P O I L E R S 🚫 B E L O W ⬇️-


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The things I always want to know 😏😉…
- First(real)Kiss : ep.20💋
- Together : ep.20 👩🏻‍❤️‍👨🏻
- BreakUp: Nope 💍

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What would you change if you could “loop”?

A detective mysteriously gains the ability to “loop” - remembering the days that repeat 5 times while everyone around him doesn’t. This gives him an advantage in solving his cases & apprehending criminals. While investigating recent murd3rs & thre@ts, he discovers he’s not the only one with this ability. Now he’s racing against time to unmask the villain & stop them before they achieve their ultimate goal.

As if that pressure isn’t enough, the woman he loves is a scientist for the company that’s at the middle of his case. Will he manage to keep her safe while still doing his job or will the case prove too much for him to handle?

This is a great sci-fi, time-travel, whodunit drama! The plot is filled with twists & turns to keep you guessing, the pacing is well done & doesn’t get boring, & the cast’s talent keeps you engaged all the way through. And, of course, the romance is a sweet bonus. 🫶🏻

Humorous & serious, light & angsty, heartwarming & heartbreaking - this drama brings it all to the screen so kudos to everyone involved in its creation. 👏🏻

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-⬇️ S P O I L E R S 🚫 B E L O W ⬇️-


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The things I always want to know 😏😉…
- First(real)Kiss : ep.12💋
- Together : ep.16 👩🏻‍❤️‍👨🏻
- BreakUp: Nope 💝

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A Sweet “Noona” Romance

A dashing rookie employee boldly pursues his senior co-worker to turn an unrequited crush into a heart-racing office romance 💜

“But if you come to me, I’ll show you the most beautiful love ever.” How can you not fall for a ML who’s says such sweet things to you?! I’m not generally a fan of younger man/older woman romances but this one is really good. For one, the ML doesn’t act younger than the FL - he’s competent, responsible, mature, & independent. While his experience in the workplace is less since he’s just starting out, he isn’t a naive fool who’s constantly making mistakes, which I appreciated. He’s not there just to flirt - he takes his job seriously…and woos his leading lady while he’s at it 😉

This drama is filled with wonderful chemistry & a beautiful love story. There are so many memorable scenes as the ML’s steady devotion to the FL helps her heal from the SML’s betrayal. His constant care for & protection of her slowly win the ML his FL’s heart. 💕

The support characters stories are interesting too, so it doesn’t feel like a lot of wasted, filler scenes.

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-⬇️ S P O I L E R S 🚫 B E L O W ⬇️-


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The things I always want to know 😏😉…
- First(real)Kiss : ep.10💋
- Together : ep.10 👩🏻‍❤️‍👨🏻
- BreakUp: ep.14 💔
- BackTogether : ep.16 ❤️‍🩹

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“Never Give Up… Never Back Down”

A group of former Olympians become cops & are placed on one team to use their unique talents to now fight crime. They have a rough start due to nobody taking them seriously but as they learn to work together they start gaining recognition… & jealous rivals.

This is by far the bloodiest & most gruesome kdrama I’ve ever watched but OMG it is so good! Honestly, the only part I didn’t like was how much screen time the villains got (side note: kudos to Oh Jung Se for being so evil! 😈) simply because I just wanted to see the heroes more!

The cast did ah-mazing, imho. I was hooked on each of their stories, hurting for their pain & cheering for their triumphs. Each had such a core of goodness in them, overcoming so much & continuing to live each day. They went through a rollercoaster of emotions & I was right along with them for the ride.

The overall case was intriguing with good pacing; each of their talents were impressive; their character growth was excellent; the romance was so sweetly satisfying; & the bond that forms between the ML & SML is perfection! 🫠

Park Bo Gum was definitely the star of the show, but his fellow actors { Kim So Hyun, Lee Sang Yi, Heo Sung Tae, & Tae Won Seok} didn’t at all disappoint! 👏🏻

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-⬇️ S P O I L E R S 🚫 B E L O W ⬇️-


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The things I always want to know 😏😉…
- First(real)Kiss : ep.5 💋
- Together : ep.8 👩🏻‍❤️‍👨🏻
- BreakUp: Nope 💝

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