Reviews

A Jarring Surreal Journey

This show was visual & oozes atmosphere. I don't know if its the creepy music, moments of silence but you just get a sense of dread and know something horrible is going to happen.

I found it interesting how the ML (serial killer) got close to people, he knows how to spot people that are weak / broken and exploits them. He likes to talk about disasters but nothing that happens would have, he INJECTED himself into peoples live to give them the push. I wish you had more back story on how the ML got this way and actually showed a killing. Everything is implied so like the Detectives you question if it really was a horrible accident.

Its too bad this show was only 6 episodes and so far no plans to expand it. Another 4 episodes would've really flehsed this out.

Whats really creepy to me is I imagine there are people like this among us.

Read More

Mostly about Female Empowerment Romance feels forced/got buried

I am surprised that I like this drama. I didn't like the first 20 episodes but returned to watch them as they provide the backdrop for the story and high entertainment value due to the problem solving/mystery.

If you are looking for romance, it's choppy. I don't like how the writers intermittently insert side stories to the romance storyline between the leads. So their romance seems abrupt going from the FL's resentment to marriage to their marriage consummation. She always seem cold to me. There's less chemistry when the FL appears to be forced into the situation.

Ep 37 is when he showed her he has always been dedicated and feeling guilty about the old fiancee/and her family (her). FL is touched. I wish she would tell him her feelings and her background. He already revealed his true self to her. What's the problem ???

Ep 39 is when they consummated their marriage - out of nowhere - like a random act or final forced deal. FL admires ML but I feel that there's no romantic feelings.

Ep 42 another chance to commit and say it out loud about her identity, she didn't say it. He accepts her silence. Well I think between husband and wife, there shouldn't be any huge secret because you trust the other person.
Another jarring perspective is she never said she lives for him. When she listed all the things that she lives for:
her parents, her daughter, the changing of the seasons, the taste of simple food, and the quiet beauty of a morning breeze—

All the things that bring her joys! She never listed him!!! What does it mean? He's her benefactor, her responsibility, NOT her joys. Not the reason she would live for.

I think it's harsh and bringing feminist perspective to extreme! Either this or the female lead never loves the ML in the romantic way.
----------
The fact that the writer/director always add a time advancement (ie. 3 months, 6months, etc... had passed) show that the romance is based on time passages. The ML has to earn every single affection from her. Passion and love don't have to be earned. Long lasting love yes. But that initial spark is pure chemistry. I see it from ML but from FL: none.

After ML shows his dedication to the old fiancee, I wish there is some more interaction between the leads: like how he takes care of her or how they work together to become closer.

It's artificial how she wrote a Chinese opera to show him her meaning and her "difference" from him. Yeh, he's still old school believing in the king. But she's not. She's all about believing in being good will win the day. Sometimes, it's not like that IRL! Without him and his family's connection, she would not be in the position to decide what she wants. Yeh, you can see the other guy will give her status - yes, it's still him who studied and went to the king's service to earn the status. Writing operas alone will give her money, but not status!

But since this is a Female Empowerment drama, of course, she's always right. He's retire from the King's service as she wanted in eps 40. And he makes a declaration of his ultimate devotion her, listing how she contribution 50% to his success and saving his family.

Anyways, this story is mostly about ML groveling his way into her life. It's very typical of Chinese drama - begging for affection until the FL feels the sincerity. Is this what females need to see from males today?

I can see where this story is heading: FL will take care of the family, rise to the top of the family and caring for them through adversity - even though it's not her choice.
Anyways, already at almost the end so have to finish. The story feels choppy/disconnected towards the end.

This is an entertaining drama. But not the best I've seen. The balance is not there. Its focus is about female empowerment. Romance feels forced or got buried in the process of always highlighting the female lead's superiority. Female empowerment is also about women who dare to follow her heart in love as in career choices. Taking care of family is also empowerment. Staying at home to take care of kids or parents is also empowerment. Not knowing all the answers and learning things the hard way is also empowerment. Giving the FL flaws and dimensional characterization is empowerment. This story fails that. Glorifying the FL makes the story less dimensional.

In response to Avenuex, I wrote 2 comments. She has her points but main criticisms were off:
"You missed the point and main theme of this drama/story: good always wins against evil. As always, I find that you pursue your narrative - maybe you didn't watch the entire drama to know how analyze. Basically, the story is about how women should fight injustice inflicted on them. The first wife - yeh she was abused by the system- but she didn't do the righteous thing: she cheated on the Lin's family (not just adultery!): she abuses poor families to earn money. There's evil in her actions. She depended on the man - her cousin and lover- when she should have depended on herself by doing the right thing and asking for divorce. I agree it's a one dimensional portrayal of a woman - Chinese dramas are not praising her qualities. And I agree with the writer. Bad qualities attributed to women should not be praised. What the writer tries to say is Chinese buddhist principle: bad deeds get bad karma in the same life. Surely you don't expect Chinese government to approve of what she was doing?"

On her complain about the FL's quietly and conveniently accepting her life:
"Maybe you are losing your voice due to barking down the wrong tree! The theme of the story again, given the context of the setting, is for a woman to work with the system and creating a lasting happiness for herself and her family. Nothing wrong with her following her heart. The ML groveled and did everything he possibly could. What else does she want? Scoop up her parents to live an uncertain life? No power, no family wealth ... to be abused by any bad people???
You yourself wouldn't want that either. Feminism is about being smart and caring. Not going against the time.

You are living in a place that has more freedom than in China. You can say whatever you want. In China, there's no such thing. Maybe you should empathize with women more."



The music is from another show - sounds like Brocade?
I still like Love Like a Galaxy. I think the director is better. And story of female empowerment is more connected to her life as she matures. It feels more organic. She didn't know all the answers. She dares to love and hate. The ML doesn't need to grovel so hard to earn his lady's love.

Read More

Trigger Warnings

First I want to clarify that I think this was very well done - production, acting, score, pacing of the story. All very well done.

But I wish I had some kind of warning before hand, so wanted to write one for others. This is very triggering. There are many instances of sexual assault. It is also violent- people getting beaten and even murdered. Several scenes are difficult to watch (they are supposed to be hard to watch, I understand that).

I would hardly classify this as a romance. They could’ve leaned into the romance a little bit more, IMO. The romance itself has some dubious consent issues. And the CEO boyfriend is more than a little crazy. Still. I was rooting them.

bottom line: avoid if Sexual assault, guns, knives, (really, violence of any kind) and self harm are triggering for you.

Read More

Akward nc-scenes and refusal to kiss does take away from a nice series

Some think this is the best JBL 2026, but of course it's not. Actors not commiting to their roles and everything what it should include does take away from this series. This *IS* disappointing. The script has the classic clichés in it, which we have seen so often for years and only drive forced drama. Still not a fan of that.

As typical with JBLs we have an introvert, insecure uke but at least we know he is gay. But of course he gets bullied from many people. In contrast we have a extrovert, energetic, athletic seme who is sure of himself but has problems keeping himself in check, it always seems his desire for his lover will make him to do something stupid.

Of course when the uke is coming out to his mom, it's not going well. You should not do it talking on the street, that is not the right place to do it. Mom is shocked but they talk it out and mom is educating herself about having a gay son. The seme has not come out in school, but he does so with some people. His family is over the moon with his little uke. The talks between the couple are really in a very sensitive way, but - there is no real kissing ever, not even in the finale. They have two akward nc-scene in the show which made me wonder if they had an intimacy coordinator on set, I doubt it. Production quality was very high, cinematography nice and everything fit well together.

Overall it's a nice show, very fluffy, with some drama but with stereotypical clichés. Because it ends with uke senpai graduating there is a hope this series gets a 2nd season and it would be so much more well deserved compared to other series. The only downside are the dead fish kisses and the akward nc-scenes.

Read More

I went into this completely blind. When I first came across the anime I was excided to watch it but life got in the way , so when I got the chance to watch the live action I didn't hesitate. It was a good watch overall , wish there was a bit more though. For example, the jumping part. They kind of glossed over it. And some other parts that felt incomplete. Some character depth on Sakurako would have been nice. I mean you don't just accept that you've been replaced that easily. And i don't know why but I didn't like the hair of anyone. But the costume and cinematics were nice. Overall a good watch but its something we already saw.

Read More

The Politics Are More Interesting Than the Romance

Overall, I love the casting, cinematography, sets, costumes, and the way the drama is directed. You can definitely tell that this is a high-budget production.
For Part 1, the story mainly focuses on the FL’s relationship with her mother, along with some of the ML’s secret investigations. Even the romance seems to be used more to explore the FL’s relationship with her mother. The development between the ML and FL is a bit lacking, though, and there aren’t many scenes showing their relationship.
Honestly, my expectations based on the drama’s title are pretty much gone. The way I’ve seen people review this drama on social media also doesn’t really align with the drama itself. A lot of people describe it as a love story, especially focusing on the general’s unconditional love, but the political aspect is barely mentioned at all. I only discovered how politically focused this drama actually is after watching it myself.
The politics in this drama are much deeper than I expected. For me, the most interesting part isn’t really the ML and FL’s storyline, but the messy political situation in the newly established kingdom and how the emperor manages to keep everything under control.

Read More

Coulda been a contenda Charlie...

First off, kudos to all the wonderfully written reviews before mine. Honestly...well done, I enjoyed and agree with everything everyone wrote.
I just want to add a few things. For me the biggest issue was the casting of Wen Guo. I don't know how anyone could ever think that this actor could play a 24 year old? He was 38 or 39 at the time of filming and he LOOKS 38 or 39. And the shows early years when everything important happens, is way more impactful and takes up more screentime than the series' later years...so it was ludicrous to think that they needed an older actor to "play" younger. It should have been the reverse. If they can age-up the young actress playing Yong Hong effectively, they could have done the same thing with an actor who looked 24. The actor playing Wen Guo was undeniably good, but his characters greatest scenes were the ones when he was younger, yet he was never convincing. Very poor casting decision.
It also bothered me - unless I missed it!? - that we never know why Xiang Dong wasn't with the Crime Division in the City and was in the mountains working at the Detention Center. Seriously...was there ever exact information as to what happened to him? If I missed it, my apologies, but I kept waiting for a flashback or specific reason why he wasn't with that division any longer. Seems to me an over-sight. If he was "sent there" as implied, tell us why!
Also, how did Wen Guo get out of the Frozen Truck? Poor storytelling. We see him later alive, so he didn't die in there, but it's crappy not to give us a 30 second scene that explains it. Especially since they made such a big deal of him fighting for his life and almost getting caught. It's a cheat.
Also, what did Wen Guo do for a living the 18 years or so after he survived running back into the mine shaft and not getting killed, whereas Xi Ma the cop did? (Hmmmm, to that!) Like someone else mentioned, it might have been nice to understand through flashbacks how he got to where he is after all those years. I still don't know what his exact job is/was once he returned. But he seemed to have a lot of money now!
Also, they didn't really handle the whole death of Fenfang as well as they think they did. It really was bit confusing and if I'm correct, the way they played it out at the end, it seemed that for all 13 - 18 (?) years after she died we're supposed to believe he was delusional to her death? But once he "solves the case" he's suddenly aware she's dead and chooses to kill himself? Hmmm.
And what did he do for all those years before Wen Guo returned? Was he at the detention center all those years? Was he driving a mini-car Taxi? Hmmm. S
The acting was great, the humour was nice, and the cinematography was incredible. Some scenes were emotionally true, others were a little maudilin but not to detract from the series overall. It's a shame though the "mystery" was so easy to figure out. As someone else mentioned correctly, it's not really a crime drama , with all that that implies for an audience, but it was different and I guess that's okay.
But it'd be nice if this could be remade by another country in the future. I'd love to see if they can keep the slice of life stuff, but make the mystery a real mystery, actually hard to figure out until the very end.

Read More

Just okay, With Some MakJang Twists

*These are just my thoughts and opinions; we don't have to agree*

The story revolves around a girl (Qing Yuan) who made plans to take revenge on the people who framed her mother and also killed her mother.
Along the way, she meets Shen Run, a man who has lived for revenge, along with his brother; they are both the sole survivors of the Shen family massacre after their family was wrongfully accused. We follow them as they seek revenge, find romance/love, and confront the truth of the past.

Likes

The leads' interaction and banter in the first half were really good- that alone kept me watching. Their chemistry was great; I could feel the tension between them from their stares and banter. The kiss in episode 23 was a result of the yearning, angst, and passion they developed over the 22 episodes of Spring of Blade.

I enjoyed the chaos, conflicts, and fights in the Xie family, and the mystery surrounding who framed her mother kept me intrigued, but I guessed the culprit at some points.


Dislikes

Towards the end, the drama became silly; in your case, you might actually enjoy it. In my opinion, they were running a MAKJANG plot with the woman lovingly raising the daughter of the woman she killed; after 19 years, the daughter learns the truth and poisons her fake mother with something mild, and the fake mother knows her daughter now knows the truth and is currently poisoning her; she then takes in something more harmful than what her daughter used to poison her, she dies, and her daughter sobs for her and calls her mom. Haha, everything going on was absurd.
Let's not even get into the secret birth swap and the truth being brought to light 19 years later.

The child actor who portrayed the lead- their acting wasn't strong to me, but I believe it's the directing; I didn't empathize with the younglings who lost their entire family overnight, and they were smiling and laughing the next morning, talking about revenge when their family had just died last night.

In my opinion, Zhou Ye acting was lacking, and at times it came across as really strong. In the scene where she acted like she was possessed, I literally cringed. It felt as though she was practicing for the scene before executing it.


The ending felt rushed to me, and I thought some scenes got skipped/glossed over; the flashbacks took a lot of screen time. The leads were rarely shown individually in the last episode, talking more as a couple. The FL's revenge arc felt subdued in comparison to her counterparts(The Glory, The Double), and she contradicts her character as someone who came for revenge; instead, she acts like a damsel in distress who would have been dead if the ML didn't always show up.
Hu Xing and the evil acts he planned to commit were resolved easily; he was beaten too easily, and his ending was also mild, given the power and influence he had in Heng Tang.

I was really disheartened when Li Cong Xin was tricked into marrying the woman he never wanted to marry; I'm glad that, in the end, they were on healthy terms, and Qing Ru seems to have matured a lot after her marriage.


Final Thoughts

The drama ended on a happy note; everyone was living a peaceful, calm, and quiet life, including the leads. Xie Shu got a satisfying ending; he seemed to be delusional at his last moments, but he got what he deserved. He was really evil and deserved the worst death.

The emperor didn't seem like one to me; it was like there wasn't enough budget for the palace and attire, or their wasn't enough officials to stand before the emperor. We just see the emperor in a particular spot, either sitting down and meditating or standing and talking like an emperor. Anyway, if I were told that he is an emperor, I wouldn't believe it.

This is a one-time watch, and I mostly enjoyed it for the leads and some parts of the plot. The manner in which the relationship developed between characters who like each other was unconvincing; they hardly have any real interaction, and yet they fall deeply in love.


Anyway, that's it.
Thanks for reading🩷.

Read More

I have some strong feelings about this one.

As this is an older drama I'm not going to go much into detail as there are many good recaps already, I will just drop my thoughts and feelings here and oh boy did I have some feelings while watching...

Lost princess in reverse harem and she's not like the other girls trope.

Everyone needs therapy.

A mother killing herself right in front of her son because she misses her husband/his father too much, after just stabbing her brother-in-law to death to avenge the said husband at said husbands funeral. Then, five minutes later, the nice grandmother dies on them. And then the Aunt has to leave both children to go and fight a war, she of course dies. Finally, Grandfather separates the two trauma bonded siblings (I think they were siblings, not sure) by sending the girl away. This is comical levels of childhood trauma.

So much bad CGI. Even the arrows sometimes are not real, tf. There are constant continuity errors in editing as well.

Plot is disjointed and I could only start somewhat enjoy watching it after ep 35 when it was finally clear that Xiaoyao woudn't stay with Jing. Once I finished all episodes, the story actually is interesting and there are many avenues to explore for next season, but it didn't change the fact that the writing felt one dimensional.

Acting , however, is very good, they do a good job with a mid script. The kid actors were really good at portraying characters that were not written to be children. Sets are nice, some seen in other dramas, but the CGI really kills the mood and vibe so hard. Costumes, wigs and what real sets there are are nice, but overall the drama feels low budget and not in a good way.

I have never disliked a romantic pairing more than I do Xiaoyao and Jing's relationship. One thing is if there's no chemistry between the actors, but whatever the hell this is is worse. I pretty much like every other character in this drama, except for these two. She's a flake and he's a doormat, a perfect match. I understand the psychology behind both characters but put together they infuriated me to the point that I couldn't watch any of their interactions (not the fault of acting).

Not going to watch season 2, I've suffered enough.

Read More

A perfect sharpen blade outshines from the Spring ?

I have watched and completed the drama and it has fulfilled my eagerness of wait for its release.. my darling Xukai and Zhao ye mase this slow pace Revenge saga with romantic touch and climax was awesome where 4 sisters settled happily our if this dangerous Xie dungeon.. every ML was perfect match for the FL.. Zhao Chen voice for the song added so much to this drama.. every stunt was marvellous and Kudos to entire team.. your hardwork has filled out eyes and heart with. 💓💝💓💝💓💝💓💝💓💝💓💕💕💕❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

I will watch again and again 😎😎😎🥰🥰🥰🥰😎😎😎
Today I saw the ratings as 8.0 so disheartening, not sure why so many haters...
Today I watched full stream and 200% sure that it's worth to watch.. 💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💝💝💝💝💝💓💓

Read More

Not all great stories need lots of romance

This is again another GREAT DRAMA with SUCH AN ORIGINAL PLOT, yet it does not get a higher rating because for some it doesn't have enough romance and others it doesn't make sense!!!!! For those who have read the book, it makes sense they will complain and I understand where they are coming from. It seems that the tv show does not follow the book. I am not surprised cause this is usually what happened.

You need to pay closer attention to all the small details!!! To understand this tv show is to follow through each character very slowly. It is not a romcom, it portray mental illness as it is, an illness of the brain. It's a bit scary or depressive but life is not always full of roses. Also, because it keeps us with lots of question about some background stories until the last 10 episodes, people were getting annoyed and fast forwarding. You could see it by the questions and comments left in the live comment section, it makes sense that they could not understand or skip on a very crucial detail.

Both leads did a tremendous job!!! Ryan and Bai lu, that was fantastic, the emotions well portrayed. Even the side characters did not disappoint!!! Good job everyone!!!

Read More

Loved it

I enjoyed watching this series-after watching part 1, I could not wait for Part 2. It delivers on all fronts. Hyun Bin, as expected. did fantastically well acting the part. Woo Do Hwan held up his end as well. Can't say the same for Jang Gun Yeong. though. That fake laugh, intentional or not is just, well, fake. His drastic characterization change in part 2, is also just inconsistent with his whole back story. But anyway... my gripe is the ending. I hated it (and I don't use that word lightly). I've come to expects twists and shock value as part of usual kdramas, but honestly, the ending lacked the emotional depth and consistency with the entire family narrative. I understand the reason behind it, and he may have had the legal , duty and moral authority to do it, but weighing that against Hyun Bin's sacrifices, even as KCIA head, just seems shallow. It goes against the emotional investment that audience was geared up for. It was also inconsistent with the story--just a twist for shock value, in my opinion. Anyway, I highly recommend watching this. especially for thriller lovers like me. Two thumbs up!

Read More

Ending will give you goosebumps

To refer to the title, it’ll give you goosebumps if you watched ‘My sassy girl’. IM CONVINCED! that these two movies are linked to one another. It just wouldn’t make sense if it didn’t?!

My heart aches knowing how sad this movie actually is but then I remember my sassy girl and prefer to assume these two are linked to one another :)

Such a classic movie. I can only hope kdramas and korean romcoms bring these type of romances back! I need more crazy female characters and shy love interests! Goofy couples are so rare in kdramas nowadays, this was such a breath of fresh air!!! Loved it! Had so much fun watching this with a friend! :)

Read More