I was still really enjoying it for the most part even without it, but that episode 10-11 patch was rough. Not only was everything a semi-boring hotel power struggle plot, but it had the terrible fake breakup trope, and like 5 very blatant ad reads. I was loving this show toward the middle of the season, then it just kind of fizzled out really hard for me. I think it came back with a decent finale, but it went from a show that I thought could be something special to something that was just pretty good, I guess.
Park Eun-bin still rules, though, and she was the reason I watched this, and the best part about this.
Favorite Episodes: 4, 6, 8
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Unfortunately disappointing
I loved some of the actors, but this isn't my favorite work from any of them. It's comedy-forward, so it's easy to watch in that sense--not to mention, short. I think the overall plot/story is getting old. I appreciated the message that everyone has their own value. Also, the romance was quite unnecessary, felt like a plot device.Takeaway: I need Moving Season 2 right now.
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But…the music! ?
I watched the available episodes and I like the premise; it is genuinely good. I haven’t had a cop show to watch in a long time. I love the tension. The chemistry is outstanding. The actors are handsome and are perfect for their respective roles. It is interesting and the plot pulls you in fast, not to mention the delicious tension between the leads right out of the gate.BUT…
The music is the worst. And I don’t mean in a “well I don’t like that song” way but in a “this music choice is so mismatched with what is happening on screen it is actively pulling me out of the story” way. I stopped halfway through episode 2 because it is jarring. I picked it up again, but for now I’m left wondering who chose this music and if they watched a playback of the screen-ready scenes before they released it. The music playing during romantic or NC scenes is especially mismatched.
If you aren’t sound sensitive, the music might not bother you. But the tonal mismatch I’m finding hard to ignore. It isn’t enough for me to drop it - yet.
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This review may contain spoilers
FL treated the ML badly despite the fact FL was super nice and caring (mild spoilers)
The story was ok, but through the whole series the FL treated the ML badly. Others have noted this as well. (Not the actresses fault, of course.) Not setting boundaries with her ex, dumping him and not loving him when she wanted to fulfill her dream rather than wanting to fulfill her dream and just asking him to keep up the relationship. And the sucker ML took her back no questions! Frustrating! I'd have said no thanks! (My wife agrees ha ha.)ML did a great job at his given role, BTW.
Mostly enjoyable but spoiled by the leads' relationship.
The 2nd couple was more compelling and their relationship, while not a smooth ride, had internal logic and consistency. Give me a drama with Lee Yul-Eum and Baek Sung Chul as the leads.
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I really enjoyed it, but...
the actors are really good. the ml is gorgeous. interesting story, complicated relationships, lovely romance (for the most part).but...geez sometimes you just wanna slap the FL. the first half of their series is a beautiful romance, the 2nd half is a melodrama and tortured love story.
the mother is unbelievably controlling. the couples communication at the start is very honest and heartfelt, then the lies start, stupid no reason lies. I get conflict is needed and things can't always be rosey but come on.
anyway even with that frustration I still really enjoyed the show. the actors were really very good!
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Pure FUN!
First, the “special FX” are not great. The story is absurd and more weirdness is added along the way, like they were making up the story on a weekly basis. But, that’s not to say I’m dissing it in any way, or that I’m not, necessarily, enjoying every quirky moment. It’s fun, funny (though, I’m not sure it’s supposed to be), and thoroughly enjoyable, if you like quirky, weird, & unintentionally funny series, THIS is for YOU!There’s a lot of sexiness, too, which will probably not turn into much more than hot kissing, because it’s a Chinese series and they tend to be pretty conservative. I hope I’m wrong. The situation between the lead characters is a total red flag situation, but in a very interesting way.
It’s easy to watch, easy to follow, no matter how the story evolves along the way, and I’m LOVING IT!
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A Winter Sun Wakes the Wind in Spring Hills' Dream
0 people found this review helpful
Their chemistry is top tier!!
I really enjoyed this drama. The story has a warm and emotional atmosphere, and the characters are easy to get invested in. I especially liked how the drama balances its more serious moments with softer and more heartfelt scenes. The pacing can feel a little slow at times, but it gives the characters enough room to develop. Overall, it’s a beautiful and engaging drama that kept me interested and made me want to keep watching.Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
I can't take this serious, I apologise.
I'm back at writing reviews and watching shorts again. I really love watching shorts and besides that, they don't take much of my time. This short was just amazing, musically wise. But the plot didn't exist. I don't even think I should label this as a spoiler because there are no spoilers to give.In mid/end 2000s there was this trend of shorts with no words. But I rather not criticise films because they have no dialogue. I had no idea about this but Boy meet Boy was made as an LGBTQ+ awareness campaign film, focussing on helping younger LGBTQ teens understand their own feelings. There were production wise some scene's just badly edited, I've seen the exact problem happening often in older shorts. At the same time, this mini short teaches how you have to be careful when talking to a stranger.
That cupid singing was totally unexpected. When she started singing I immediately recognised this song. Someone tell me if this is just a viral song or if I just happened to know it?? The song over all was a bit too long to my opinion. When a short in general already has no dialogue it just feels weird to suddenly add a song? although it matched the situation I didn't really like it.
What confused me was that they randomly started hugging over a film?? They are stranger right? And then all of the sudden that stupid cupid girl returns. The shots after that hug also made no sense. Overall, it was quite good (for the song) but uhh.... the plot was pretty much non existent.
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This review may contain spoilers
Is it a joke?
What happened to the storyline? Since the last three episodes everything changed. She could have saved herself too, the writers rewrite the plot a 50% to not say more than that. The ghosts and their stories are almost gone.I enjoyed this drama a lot but, after the last episodes I feel disappointed by the writers and producers. This Drama had an amazing potential that was lost by bad decisions.
The male main character has done a remarkable job so far. The female main character had a great development until the last two episodes.
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This review may contain spoilers
Incredible
I was looking for a Japanese movie or drama that is similar to The Truman Show, that would inspire lucidity and this did not disappoint. The story is incredible- it only uses the subway station as the backdrop for the entire movie and yet it’s more engaging than anything I’ve seen in recent times. The main actor is incredible and the little boy is so adorable and innocent and brilliant. I was concerned that it might be too scary for me because it was listed as a horror movie but it was more interesting than scary- eerie and surreal would be a better word to describe it. After watching it once I watched it again. It’s quite addicting and even in a simple storyline there is so much hidden depth and meaning to each scene.Was this review helpful to you?
A Winter Sun Wakes the Wind in Spring Hills' Dream
6 people found this review helpful
This review may contain spoilers
heavy stuff with stuff breaking immersion...
When I heard of this show, I expected greatness, but sadly it did disappoint somewhat.Positive: No dubbing for the most part, you get the original voices. Very artsy art direction, color grading, costumes. Everything has a reason and is done very well. Except the "acceptance speech" in the final episode, that felt very artificial. Great acting and stunning cinematography.
Negative: Three stories where the 2nd couple feels like a contaminant. It breaks the flow of the main story and they don't really have a deep connection. Their story is not a focus and it shows, it's like a 08/15 BL which entered an artsy production. There are many tragedies in this story and there is no 3rd couple, because forcing drama seemed more important. They could have adapted the story to save the little brother and let him be happy, and remove the 2nd couple. Also some silly comedy and sound effects break the immersion from the main story. I did not like that at all.
I will not go into depth with my review, because first I'm quite late due to reasons and many people already wrote a lot and just pointing out my pros/cons is enough. It's a show worth watching, but I'm not satisfied with the whole series. Considering all the crap we get to watch this show is a marvel, but it did not meet my expectations. Story wise it lacked but it over-compensated with everything else. But killing of the little brother is a reason that this series will not land on my recommended list.
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Very low budget, AI & bad dubbing...
This could have been one of the best CBLs ever, but they botched it. While AI plays a big role in China, it also plays a role in this show. It's not that bad, at least we have real people doing a real series. The biggest complaint is the dubbing, which is really bad and even worse is the singing-dubbing which often has nothing to do with the song you hear. The songs itself are all excellent.It begins like an ordinary BL but that is only half the story. What seems 08/15 is something completely different. The title and the main characters blue lips will make sense further through the story. This is one of the series which will get better with every episode and you will gradually understand what's going on.
I really wish chinese productions would not dub at all. First they are produced for the international market anyways and not shown officially in China and second I will not recognize any chinese dialect anyways. At least I can hear differences between cantonese and mandarin :) The show grew on me the further it went and it's for sure not a bad watch, when you can ignore some of the AI and the dubbing. For a low budget production, they did a good job.
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terrible acting
the story is overall bad. We don’t like the story this sucks stupid ugly, fucking bitch ass ugly, stupid actors, stupid storyline everyone deserves to die. The main characters are terrible. They can’t act the storyline is horrible. We don’t like this. Flip this ugly thing stupid thing ugly things stupid thing stupid thing, main character, stupid main character, poop, main character, main character, main character fart main character stupid, main character stupid main character stupid main character stupid main character stupid main character stupid, main character, stupid main character, stupid main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid main character, stupid main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main character, stupid, main characterWas this review helpful to you?
I came for Pei Ji and stayed for a romance only one person was in
Mild spoilers for character dynamics, nothing plot-specific.I started The Maid because of Deng Kai, and it took maybe three episodes to realize his role here is scaffolding. This is Shen Yu Qing's show. Every thread, every reveal, every alliance exists to serve her revenge, and Pei Ji is mostly the mechanism that makes it possible. If you're coming for him the way I did, adjust expectations early.
That said, the revenge plot itself is solid and it's what earns most of my score. The pacing holds across 26 episodes, the political conspiracy layer is more coherent than a lot of short dramas in this lane, and Zhao Xi Xi carries the weight of the lead role well.
My problem is the romance, and it's a big enough problem that I nearly rated lower.
Pei Ji changes for her. He softens, he opens up, he lets himself be vulnerable, and she still won't be honest with him. Not once does she meet him where he is. She keeps information from him past the point where it's strategic and well into the point where it's just a wall. As someone who has been stonewalled by the person she loved, I was triggered hard.
I understand the argument that a revenge heroine shouldn't have to soften, and I'm not asking her to abandon the plot for a man. But if a drama is going to spend that much runtime building his vulnerability, it owes the audience some reciprocity, and this one doesn't pay it off.
8.5 for the story, the production, and Deng Kai doing a lot with a role written smaller than his billing. Honestly, on a different day I'd have given it a 6.
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SεX surprised me in the best possible way!
Α Masterpiece!I was initially drawn to its bright, romantic-looking poster and the fact that it was only seven episodes, without really knowing what to expect. What I found was a warm, intelligent and beautifully balanced series!
The subject of sex therapy could easily have been treated in a crude or overly provocative way, but S&X does the opposite. It approaches sexuality in a thoughtful and surprisingly scientific way, while keeping the story light, funny, romantic and very human. The dialogues are particularly well written and are used not only to explain the issues, but to move the story forward and reveal the characters.
What I appreciated most was the message at the heart of the series: everyone can have questions, insecurities or difficulties related to sex. No one should feel strange, ashamed or alone because of them, and asking for professional help should not be a taboo. Even the sex therapist himself has his own personal struggle, which makes the message even more meaningful.
I sincerely hope that this series will encourage people who are struggling with similar issues to seek professional help, while also raising awareness about the importance of better and more open sexual education.
Nobody is presented as perfect, and the series also cleverly touches on people who exploit insecurities. It shows that behind these issues there are real people, with fears, vulnerabilities and emotions.
Beyond the story itself, I loved the bright atmosphere and aesthetic of the series! It managed to address serious social issues without ever becoming heavy or preachy. At the same time, it gave me a small window into aspects of contemporary Japanese society and the difficulties surrounding open conversations about sexuality.
A warm, thoughtful and genuinely enjoyable series, with a very satisfying and optimistic ending. I finished all seven episodes feeling that I had watched something entertaining, but also something that had a purpose.
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