This review may contain spoilers
Divorce is not the end, but maybe the start of a new relationship
Good Partner turns out to be a great legal show. This show brought a new way to see a divorce case from another viewpoint. They clearly depicted the sturggles and pains in every divorce case. Also it emphasized that divorce is not the end of the world, but maybe a new way to re-arrange the relationship. Not only and always about the clients, this show put spotlight on the divorce attorneys and the challenges on how they handled the quarelling couples. More importantly, being a divorce attorney doesn't mean that they're exempt from marriages and divorces themselves. The depiction of the cases were close to realistic, there were several cases being dragged intentionally by the clients, while some chose to withdraw prematurely.Jang Na Ra deserved a praise here, she got that Daesang for a reason. Impressive job from all of the casts, including the divorce clients. I also like the character developments. Cha Eun Gyeong was once a cold and profit-oriented divorce attorney. She matured a lot after the divorce hit her hard.
Although it's been a great journey, I think this show would be better if it ended after Eun Gyeong opened her own law firm, or even after her divorce finalized. There were several unimportant plot, and even a bit draggy, that seemed forcefully inserted just to meet the episode numbers requirement. These subplots couldn't match the importance and tense of the spotlight plot of Eun Gyeong divorce, especially the Daejeong management change plotline. It felt very unnecessary.
It's been quite a while since I saw a good legal show. It's very recommended, particularly because the divorce-cases-focused theme is fresh and rare.
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⭐DUANG WITH YOU⭐ - The most beautiful masterpiece ever to exist!!
Duang with you is not just a normal drama, ITS THE DRAMA WHICH BRINGS YOU INTO THEIR WORLD!!🌟🌟 Duang is the most greenest flag💚.. I mean GREENEST UNIVERSE✅ that I have ever met❤️❤️.. Qin is the most diva-est person that I have ever seen since starting to watch Thai dramas/lakorns.❤️❤️ This drama isn't just something to me like I could ever forget.. It's the drama which healed me during my hard times. For those who didn't start watching this, you better should now or else you're missing a MASTERPIECE. It all started when I was watching Me And Thee (GMMTheeV) which made me laugh and have a good relaxing Saturday.. Until it ended, I was really lonely thinking I wouldn't have a joyful saturday anymore.. Then I just casually went to DMD channel since I've watched Khemjira Ton Ron and The Next Prince.. Guess what..! I saw Duang with you's trailer and I thought of watching it. OMG it was the most cutest trailer that I've ever seen so I had the thought of watching it. After the last episode (Ep-12), I started crying like I dumped someone I really loved meaning I cried for almost an hour.. Qin runnign to Duang was soo damn cute..😭😭 For those who have watched this, y'all can understand the pain we've been through ever since it has ended. Coming back to the drama, everything they potrayed in this, the actors, OST's, production and the script writing was perfection!!* I first thought that I should drop this since Duang was soo childish (in my pov), but then I thought it will be good so I kept watching and I'm sooo glad I did. Qin's trauma shown in this was really good, I even felt his pain on behalf. Duang being there for him at the very beginning shows that true love can take a while to come but after you get it, never ever lose it!! The NC scenes shown was really loving and affectionate that you can see it by their look of eyes. Only thing I'm sad about is Jamie and Marvis relationship. I know they started getting close but they should have a confirmation about them.. Oh yah about Jamie :: Jamie - Duang - Pae.. I really loved their friendship.. It's just soo nice to see them laugh and joke about all the time. But most of all how supportive they are.. Qin's band, Tong and Kim applies for the same. They have been supporting Duang to get him his diva. I ain't gonna type more since my hands hurt but I'll tell you all my favorite episode)My favorite episode was the 6th episode since it showed their performance 'Not The Best But Still Good' (that is my favorite scene of the whole drama) and showcasing a little bit of Qin's trauma but then Duang continuing the performance was soo damn good. Him supporting his crush is soo sweet.. And their 1st kiss... Uff,, It killed me hard that I had to fall on my knees.. Anyways I'm so so so happy that I watched DWY otherwise I would be pouty like Duang.. Thank you so much, Duang with you for making my Saturdays enjoyable.. And a huge thanks to P'TEETEE, P'POR, P'NORTH, P'OTTO, P'WAVE P'THEE, P'HUGH for this drama a beautiful journey.. Once again, this is NOT JUST THE BEST,, BUT THE BEST-EST thing ever to watching. (I miss them sooo damn much😭😭, but I'm gonna go rewatch it byeee.) :) #duangqin #jamiemarvis #tongpae #kim #teeteepor #northotto #theewave #hugh (hehe lol)❤️🌟❤️🌟❤️🌟❤️🌟
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Too many plot holes
This started out well, an action thriller, but lost itself in the game.The only character I felt drawn to was the husband, and even then, the writers did not draw any of them to make us like them, let alone feel for any of them.
There was no chemistry between FL and both her husband and bodyguard. The age difference between the male leads and female lead was noticing. The FL's acting, was stiff, and not believable.
Unfortunately, it was like bits and pieces of a story, thrown together, some good parts, but wasn't flushed out well enough to make it work..
Too many plotholes.
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My mister-esqe
I headlined this as My Mister-esque because honestly, I didn’t know how else to correlate the feeling you get while watching this.It is deep. You feel sorrow, warmth, happiness, and you are constantly responding emotionally to what is happening on screen. At times, you even catch yourself wondering how long this actor’s dialogues are going to go on, and how much more he can really eat or keep stuffing his face. :)
I loved the supporting cast. I keep forgetting the name of the nemesis/friend of the male lead, but he has done a wonderful job, as he always does in all his roles. He keeps you laughing, sometimes he irritates you, and then suddenly you pity him. That is not easy to pull off. The rest of the supporting cast has also performed very well and adds a lot of weight to the drama.
Overall, the drama is emotionally provoking and thought-provoking. I’m still not sure if I would place it in the same emotional or intellectual bracket as something like Rashomon or 12 Angry Men, but it does give glimpses of that feeling. It makes you pause, think about people, and sit with the emotions instead of just moving on. Maybe it doesn’t fully land in that legendary space, but it is still very good and definitely worth watching.
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Good chemistry, weak storyline that had potential to be better
There really was sufficient material here to make this way more interesting. And it started much stronger than it finished. I liked the mains and I'm a sucker for a vampire story. (Yeah, I went there.) The story didn't explore many things that could have made it more satisfying. More about their individual histories. More about the conflict with the brother. More about vampire v non-vampire issues. And they took time (precious time in a short format like this) to do things that didnt really advance the plot. Its actually harder to make a short format piece, imho, because you have to be really efficient with the time you have. No filler at all.It was cute. I'm not mad that I took time to watch it.
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Never felt my emotions surge up so much until this Drama
As someone who watched tons of dramas during COVID and reduced them and only watched the popular or eye-catching ones post COVID, this was a MASTERPIECE. I barely say this, but this truly felt like I was part of the drama.As someone who has experienced something similar, I felt my emotions were being touched and felt by someone else.
Coming back to the drama, what I liked the most is how it showed the priorities people have in real life and showing how different emotions lead on to different outcomes.
This is my first ever drama I have watched of the leads. I have heard how Arthur Chen, lacks in his acting skills but this proved it wrong. Sometimes being quiet and actions show them more. I did read a review or a comment saying how they were annoyed about Zhu Yun, but I think those feelings and emotions last for quite a while when you have very strong feelings for your partner and vice versa. But it haunts you even more in the end, when they act like they never had those feelings and you can never get a closure. Anyone who experiences such events, heal in different ways or sometimes they don't. The only thing I didn't like in the drama but can't blame Zhu Yin is how easily she let herself weak for Li Xun when they met each other again. I think they should have let her not forget how she suffered those years because of several peoples action.
Onto the support roles, as much as GJH pissed me off and he acted so pathetic during the drama. Everyone gets jealous but getting obsessed about it without caring how it affects everyone around you is definitely another level of patheticness. I'm not sure if the he deserved what the ending was but yeh FZJ definitely got a good ending. He could have definitely had some self respect and reduced that ego. Same for Li Xun, I get he is godly and stuff, but high ego never does any good to anyone.
I also didn't like FSM, such a two faced friend but at the same thats also reality. Not all your friends and roommates will support your side, everyone has their own priorities whether your being right or not. Thats what I liked about this drama, It showed the reality of campus in terms of friendship to some extent. Not everything can be captured in one drama but this definitely had those aspects that most dramas do not show.
Though it is a slow burn drama, and I myself hesitated for 3 years before I watched it and YES I DEFINITELY GOT HOOKED.
I would recommend to anyone who is trying to find dramas with good reality check and slow burn romance about struggles. (But yes it is more on the emotional aspect over physical struggles experienced).
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Highly anticipated but disappointed
Was really disappointed by this. I really liked the Japanese version but it really didn't wrap up the whole story line. So when i saw a thai remake with fourth i was like yeah but was really disappointed in his acting. Fouth did a good job in my school president so i don't know what happened. I was more focused on the straight couple and that's a bad sign for a BL.Was this review helpful to you?
For a short length drama (~19 mins) its very good
I'm currently watching this, not yet finished.Okay, so my review is solely based on other short length dramas. And compared, to other short length dramas, this one is very good. The story doesn't really go in depth in like background story/info, which isn't necessarily bad. To be honest, because of the time it would be impossible to pull off, so the drama instead focuses on the main storyline. I really like the acting from both the main leads. Their chemistry is really good!!
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Excellence
A few scenes of mob/gangster scenarios and inferences. But kept to a minimum. Nothing excessive or gratuitous. Trope: My boyfriend cheated with my best friend. After breaking up I married his father. (Different in that the marriage was done so she could claim her inheritance, not as an emotional response to the infidelity or for revenge.)Visually elegant. Everything about this is close to perfection. A chance to see some real craft skills. Kudos to casting. Performances, including several supports, more than impressive. Zhao Ting Yi was dominant, even when not on screen. He and Deng Ling Shu were a stellar match. Newer actors (Li Yu Tong & Shu Han Yu) were surprisingly outstanding. Zhu Xiang as Ma San? Awesome! And that's an understatement. The actress who played the clan matriarch managed to be both loving and a true dragon queen. Every one of her and Zhu Xiang's scenes were a treat.
A top rewatch and on my all time favorites list.
AKA - My One and Only
Note: REALLY WANT TO KNOW WHO PLAYED THE CLAN MATRIARCH! And expanded cast info.
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Mostly a failure, especially for those who watched s1/read the novel
this is a continuation of PA, no point in denying it bc it is nearly impossible to understand the plot otherwise. if it was a standalone it would be a 7, as a continuation it deserves a 5, thus i put a 6.cast wise: most of the actors are good. not princess agents cast good, but talenteded enough to pull you in. particularly, the actor of yan xun and then zhuge yue. the fl situation needs to be nuanced: 1) she played the role of young chu and she looks a little similar to the og actress--> easier to accept her, especially whith the pain of the whole cast being new. 2) her acting is acceptable, not great, sometimes even lacking, which can be justified by the writing choices and her inexperience, none of which are the viewers fault. this is mostly a miscasting issue. 3) the scandal surrounding the actress doesnt particularly affect me, her age can even be overlooked. yes it is jarring seeing such a young face for a renowed general and even more how her age impacts the chemisty (or lack of) between her and the ml. knowing yue and chus relationship, they could have pulled it off without any intimate scene, but the writers didnt help with that and the actress is partially to blame.
characterisation: messed up. 1) chu was brave loyal idealistic but not stupid. walking into traps and enforching immediate change to a structural problem shouldnt have been handled this way. 2) yue: a cold strategist with a soft spot for chu. as we progressed in PA, some might have perceived it as a change in charcater towards a masochist lover, which for the grand finale is acceptable but shouldnt have been a recurring theme in rebirth. 3) yan xun: he is a nuanced charcater, between a loyal man who would never kill chu and between a now cruel victim who would hurt her in his journey for revenge. an innocent soul who was wronged and now is hurting others but also someone who should prioritise yanbei. he can become obssessive to a degree. rebirth couldnt consistently deliver these nuances, some scenes showed it while others reduced him to an obssessed unfit king. 4) chun ner: her story arc was completed in PA and even in the novel her role disappeared, bringing her back was a choice. i can understand her actions and motivations till she reached biantang but after that, her role with the 13th prince and zhang che was an overreach. 5) zhang che/prince: they took the one stable character who values huamn life and bent him in the last eps, which could have been an interesting way to see how morals bend against hardship, but the comical way in which his herat changed again in the last ep and discarding his relationship with an eqully moral general that could have brought him back to the right side was a bad take.
scenario/plot: the love story between the 3 main charcaters could have been better. the fragile trust, the obsession, the different values and hardships in life due to their statues could be displayed better. PA has already done the characters development arcs which would make it repetitive to replicate in rebirth and flat if the characters dont change much. seeing how these new personalities interact could have been a repalcement, but rebirth played more on the battles between them than the trust or loyalty that was the cause of the tension.
the battles and deaths were more valued than the plot, making it a repetition of the love betrayal and death triangle without any real tension.
most of the scenes that characters werent acting logically and other measures could have been taken.
yet again, the repetition made the plot weaker, in the first 2 eps, chu falls in the lake twice, there are 2 assassination attempts and in the first 10 eps there is a constant cylce of her being chased and saved in weird ways.
slavery: ending slavery is a moral contemporary ideal that might have existed in ancient china but wouldnt have that much support from influtential people who benifitted from it. its abolition in biantang and opening shops for women as if that would end a structural problem in 2 days was simply wishful thinking.
the role of religion in politics seemed overstated, not bc it doesnt exist but bc neither PA nor the first eps of rebirth have esteblished its role, yet the faceless god's sect have played an important role in the finale that we weren't prepared for.
visuals: a saving grace even if too cliched.
novel/PA: ik the mark on her back wasnt in the novel, but seieng as how loosely rebirth followed the novels, it would have been more interesting to put it back, especially with the title being rebirth that seems to have lost its meaning when we look at the plot.
s2's aim was a closure after yue's sacrific but the last ep wasn't the closure we needed and not the one in the novels. the end trying to be poetic and seeing different endings was a nice concept with bad execution. the timeline is messy, between the moths spent travelling/in battle, the death of li ce and the rule of ximeng, we have contradicitng statements and s2 could have taken from 3 to 6 yrs. chu not appearing in the fianl scene even tho yuwen said she is alive was abd choice. killing off all side character was meant to show the brutality of war, but had a comical effect between all fo them appearing in each others dreams, dying at the same time and having no main chacter impacted. the recurring theme of a main charcater dying and coming back to life simply was badly executed, e.g yuwen yue dying and his corpse being with xinger yet coming to save her int he last ep and somehow managing to find her between 220k fightng soldiers in the same time. audiance's imagination /nostalgia add some of the tension missing.
on a final note, to all those who watched PA or read the novel, i am not unhappy to have a resemblance of a closure (evemn if badly thought out and acted) through rebirth. however, in my mind, i can imagine a 100 better scenarios that use the visuals from rebirth to make a plot that wither follows the novel more closely or makes a new season absed on the the ice power subplot and an=ll the analysis and yearining for this series, developped during the alst 10 yrs.
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40 episodes, really?
I would to start by saying this is not a bad drama, but it's very too long for what its has to tell. There a lot of problems for the plot and way too much episodes, the story have too much repetitive things. Acting is good, OST is very nice, i like the CGI.I can say it's worth it to watch if you like the actors but overall its a very common drama.
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So hot!
Though it's just a compilation of all the NC scenes from the series I am not mad at it at all. Because those scenes are so hot and with him telling the story is a good touch, it still feels a bit like a story.The NC scenes in the drama were so well done, you don't see that often. And it's all of them, not just one or two good executed scenes.
The chemistry between the mains is undiniablethey and they really look very turned on!
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Wheres the plot?
I had to get used to the acting in the beginning to be able to watch this. I dont blame the actors for this, the plot was horrible, simply because there wasnt really one. The people who are rating this serie high are the people who enjoy watching bls that are only about the romance. At some point the story got boring because it was just the same thing over and over again.This couldve def been way better if there was an actual story line, but everything just got glazed over imo.
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A Gem Worth Discovering
WOW. I fell so hard for this drama. It was recommended by a friend, and honestly, I found a gem.Everything about it.. the plot, the storytelling, the characters, and especially the cast is superb. Pond and Peterpan’s chemistry is on another level. I genuinely don’t understand why they’re not a fixed pairing when their connection feels so natural and strong on screen.
The acting overall is impressive, but Pond really stood out to me. His performance? Chef’s kiss. He carried his role so well that now I just want to see him in more series as a main lead.
What surprised me the most is how deeply this drama affected me. As a Catholic who doesn’t believe in reincarnation, I never expected to feel this way.. but this made me wish, even just a little, for a chance to go back and change things. It made me reflect on my past and think about how I can make my life better moving forward. That kind of impact is rare.
This will definitely be one of my top BL dramas. I may be new to the BL world, but this one set the bar incredibly high.. and I don’t think that’s changing anytime soon.
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A cathartic experience
A Gentle Breeze in the Village is a cathartic movie. I had no idea what this movie was about and walked into it blindly, but the moment I started, all the pent-up emotional stress just exhaled from my body. It was like a spiritual experience I go through with these types of Japanese movies, where my whole nervous system gets reset.
Plot**
The story revolves around a small group of students in a tiny coastal village where there are only six students in the entire school, ranging from first grade to eighth grade. Everything changes when a new student from Tokyo, named Soyo, joins the eighth grade.
The movie itself is not overly dramatic. The main focus is on the students, their lives, and the little hurdles they face while growing up. The film is divided into small chapters, each centered around a specific time, such as summer, school trips, and New Year festivals. It beautifully portrays their growth, the changes they experience, their adventures in finding love, and rediscovering the world outside, including their affection for their home, all while evoking feelings of nostalgia and the slow passage of time.
The pacing of the movie strikes a perfect balance; it’s not too slow but also not too fast. It encourages viewers to sit back and enjoy the beauty of everyday life in Japan.
The cinematography was stunning, capturing that sense of nostalgia, and evoking that desire to escape to rural Japan to embrace this simple living. The visuals are stunning, with great attention to nature; the greens and blues of the landscape, and a spacious composition around the subjects that allows for an appreciation of the setting. The houses, roads, and buildings blend so harmoniously that at times they resemble a beautiful painting. The editing is also very realistic with no use of heavy filters, maintains strong realistic feel, making you feel as if you are truly in the village, experiencing the warmth of the sun.
Throughout the film, I found myself completely relaxed and fully immersed in the experience. It was a beautiful reminder to appreciate a slower pace of life, free from the distractions of the modern world. The scenes are peaceful, without anything overly stimulating. Even when certain scenes are set in Tokyo, the camera primarily focuses on the characters, minimizing the chaotic background of the bustling city. This contrast is particularly evident when Soyo first arrives in Tokyo and finds herself in a crowded station, surrounded by people moving at a frantic pace, like a swarm of bees. That was the moment when I truly noticed the how incredbly peaceful the pace of the movie been and the contrast between the two settings..
Overall, **A Gentle Breeze in the Village** is an exquisite piece of art. If you enjoy watching slice-of-life stories set in Japan and seek a soulful experience, this movie is definitely for you.
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