Reviews

way ahead of its time

don’t let anyone fool you this is not like any other family kdrama, this is the best family kdrama ever.
maybe i am being biased but this show has it all. it tackles a lot of societal problems that many families face in a way that is so easy but still so exciting to follow. it’s a good mix of comedy, slice of life and drama, so the perfect family drama combination truly.
this show came out in a time where most of these problems were taboo and never shown as raw as it is seen in this show. this is the beauty of this show because this rawness won’t be able to be replicated again.

i think i have rewatched this like 10 times already (no kidding) and each time i have honestly grown to love the characters even more. it felt like they became my own family and i am a part of their everyday life.
the mom is truly the backbone of the family.

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This Show Promises Exactly What The Title Revealed, Delusion - A False Belief

To start off, its very rare that I get to see a thriller Thai drama on Netflix, with the former being Girl From Nowhere, Delete, 6ixty9ine etc, Delusion stacks up quite decently around this line up. It has psychological, suspense, mystery and police procedural elements, and it blends quite nicely and doesn't take it too over the top. Here is my detailed review for the show:

Pros:

1. Good storyline, It finds a nice middle ground between being overly complicated and overly simplistic.
2. The direction was done quite nicely, especially in how it executed the flow between each plot twist while bringing all the other elements together.
3. Editing was quite amazing, some of the scenes and the transition was done quite nicely, keeping the flow of the story and emotions alive, so it isn't slow at all.
4. Cinematography is really nice, captured the essence of a good psychological thriller taking place in a local province, so they have nailed the setting, visually I felt it was fitting the entire narrative of the story.
5. They have done a good job on the casting, no flaws there, felt just right. Same opinion for the acting.
6. Background score and music, decently captured the essence.
7. Ending binds everything pretty much everything together, just the right ending for me.

Cons:

1. Acting at some places seem off, this is just me nitpicking. Otherwise, acting is also good.
2. While the storyline doesn't seem complicated, some things could have been explained better. They have done a good job on explaining certain things in the show and showing it visually, but just a bit more and I as an audience can understand what happened, considering this is a limited series.

In conclusion, this is a good, well made psychological thriller and doesn't disappoint. The show keeps you engaged, not too confusing, a good quick watch if you want to watch a decent psychological thriller. In comparison to the previous shows, this may not hit top tier for me, but still is worth the watch.

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Started Strong, Ended in Confusion

Started Strong, Ended in Confusion 😅😂

Is that it?! 😂 I honestly can’t explain my emotions right now. 🤭
The ending was not explained properly, and I’m still sitting here like… “Wait, what just happened?” 😂

A lot of viewers recommended A DREAM WITHIN A DREAM to me because they know I’m into fluffy romantic-comedy dramas. And honestly, the beginning was GREAT! I was enjoying it so much. But somewhere in the middle, the plot started getting a little annoying for me—mainly because of the 2nd ML, Chu Gui Hong. 🤦🏻‍♀️😂 And then we got that ending… which left me with even MORE questions.

🌸 THE CAST & CHARACTERS
Liu YuNing — for me, he always delivers when it comes to acting. His characters usually have that strong, intimidating aura, and we all know he can pull off the “I’m the baddest of the bad” type.
So when I saw him as Nan Heng getting soft, laughing, making cute gestures, acting stupidly in love and becoming clingy toward Song YiMeng…
I was like… WHAT THE HEEEELLLLL?! 😂😂😂
He can actually act like this?! And I’m still not sure whether I’m used to seeing him this way or whether it suits him. 🤣
I really loved his Li Shi Liu costume! For me, it’s one of his most charismatic and handsome looks. And of course, Liu YuNing delivered well in both of his characters.

Li YiTong — this is my first drama of hers, and I think she did a great job as Song YiMeng. Song YiMeng is funny, cute, smart but lazy, and overall, she knows exactly what she wants—and what she DOESN’T want.

📚 THE PLOT
I’ve watched quite a lot of time-travel dramas, so I’m already used to the concept. But this one can definitely make you dizzy. 😂🤭
There were so many transitions and changes that you really had to pay attention to understand what was happening. I can understand why some viewers dropped it because they found the plot confusing. I felt the same way at times! 😂

🤦🏻‍♀️ MY FIRST ISSUE — CHU GUI HONG
Okay… this man! 😂🤭
Sorry for the term, but I found his character SO frustrating.
How can they build an obsessed character who always chooses to do the wrong thing FIRST instead of investigating what actually happened?! 😂
He became obsessed with killing Nan Heng even after knowing that Nan Heng is not involve on his father's death. At some point, I felt like they literally created a character just to be the villain and cause problems. 🤣
And the funniest part? Until the very end, he was STILL obsessed with Nan Heng! 😭😂

🤯 MY SECOND ISSUE — THAT ENDING. THE DREAM ENDING.
I’m confused. 🤭
Did Song XiaoYu gain the ability to time-travel whenever she wanted? She was with Nan Heng inside the script, but then she could also work as an actress with Nan Feng (Liu YuNing’s third character) in the modern world? Did I understand that correctly?! 😂

🤯 MY MAJOR & LAST ISSUE — THE MODERN ERA
Okay, this is where my brain completely gave up. 😂
So we see that there is another scriptwriter.
Does that mean whatever Nan Heng and Song XiaoYu (modern-day Song YiMeng) changed and experienced was actually part of another script?

AND HOW DID NAN HENG EVEN GET TO THE MODERN ERA?!
This was NOT explained properly! 😭😂
Seriously, I finished the drama feeling pissed AND happy at the same time. 🤣 Pissed because I still have questions… Happy because I FINALLY FINISHED IT! 😂😂😂

💕 OVERALL
A DREAM WITHIN A DREAM is 8/10 for me.
The ML and FL were great, and the supporting cast was SUPERB! They made so many scenes hilarious. 😂
The chemistry was so-so for me, but thankfully, we got a happy ending. ❤️

I love Liu YuNing, but honestly, for me, this drama wasn't as great as POB, AJTL, or even TSOPG.
Still, it was entertaining enough to finish—and at least I can finally stop asking myself : "WAIT, WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED AT THE END?" 😅🤣🤭

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Perfect for a comfort drama

This being jun's first drama after becoming an idol, is already special enough, on top of that they paired him with miaoyi, oh i loved their chemistry so much, no one could've played xiao tu better than miaoyi, their chemistry was so natural, i loved xiao tu's character, she was outwardly lively, goofy, cheerful, even rebellious, yet she also had understanding of alot of things, i love how she handled when her parents insisted her to to talk to ling chao after his father returned, i saw everytime he was down she would notice, help him and act like she hadn't noticed at all, the quiet care says alot, then there's greenest flag ling chao, never hurts her, cares silently since the first episode, tries to be the best husband possible, giver her everything she needs, ahh these fictional mens are raising standards day by day, anyway miaoyi and Jun had really touching chemistry abd everything is so healthy in this drama.

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Stay for the first 2/3rds, then just skip to the end

UPDATE: I ended up changing my mind about this - the last third of this show was straight up goofy in a way that was clearly not intended. Once they got together, the plot was exceptionally boring. A few cute moments here and there, so just skip around. I was cringing so hard in the last episode (the 'twist', concept of the nerdy guy being a thug, and how weirdly everything escalated) that I only fully saw the final scene (which was also cringe). 😭
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We need more comedic old man BLs, and this is taking the cake for 2026 so far. It's not as over-the-top as Ossan's Love's reactions or editing, but maybe that makes this more palatable to a broader audience.

Nice chemistry, funny, and cute. I will say that it's not that deep and just feels like a comforting, funny series with romance sprinkled throughout. But I still appreciate those types of BLs anyways.

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A Disappointingly Disjointed Experience

Dropping it at Episode 3.

I’m genuinely disappointed. I really wanted to love this one. I was looking forward to Shogun. I’m dropping this one after episode 3. The heightened, soap-opera-style acting isn’t working for me, and the Mandarin dubbing—especially Paobei’s voice—feels noticeably disconnected from both Shogun’s lip movements and the gentle character he’s portraying. I’ve found myself cringing and looking away from the screen too often, and at this point there just isn’t enough here that I’m personally enjoying to justify forcing myself through the rest of the series. My viewing time is limited, and I’d rather spend it on something I actually want to watch.


Episode 2 wasn’t much better than episode 1 for me. I’m not sure if it is worth the time commitment. I can absolutely see what they are trying to accomplish, but it just misses the mark. I will try episode 3 when it drops, hoping it starts to gel.


Original review
I was genuinely excited for Not Yours, so unfortunately Episode 1 was a disappointment.

The biggest problem wasn’t that the story left unanswered questions—of course a first episode should. It was that I rarely felt curious about the answers. Instead of wondering eagerly about Jun Ying’s past, Paobei’s family situation, the history between Weibang and Milan, or the mysterious “Madam,” I mostly found myself wondering why I should care yet.

There are plenty of events, but very little narrative accumulation. Scenes introduce characters, mysteries, threats, potential jokes, and future plotlines, then move on before any of them have enough weight to pull me into the next scene. The episode is constantly giving me things that should be intriguing—the brutal cigarette-burning opening, Jun Ying’s severe allergic reaction, Paobei choosing not to let him die, Jun Ying’s apparent history with Madam, the missing diamond ring, the search for a new chef—but instead of building on one another, these elements feel placed beside each other.

I can see exactly what the episode is setting up. Paobei and Jun Ying meet when Jun Ying slips and Paobei catches him, establishing one future couple. Weibang unexpectedly reunites with celebrity Milan, establishing the second. Jun Ying needs a new chef, and Paobei happens to be one. The connections are there, but the way the story moves between them feels strangely disjointed rather than like the pieces of one developing narrative.

The tone also feels uncertain. Jun Ying is introduced as genuinely vicious, yet later his assistant (possibly) jokes about having Paobei drawn and quartered, and the scene seems to shift suddenly toward dark comedy - or if he was serious, that level of viciousness is not yet clear. Because the episode hasn’t yet established a strong tonal identity, moments like that feel more odd than funny or menacing.

The dubbing distracted me considerably as well. Shogun’s visible lip movements repeatedly did not seem to match what the Chinese dubbed voice was saying, making an already awkward episode feel even less cohesive.

This is only Episode 1, so I’m nowhere near ready to judge the series as a whole. There is still plenty of time for the story and characters to click into place. But as a premiere, this didn’t hook me. It was busy without feeling propulsive, full of setup without creating much curiosity, and—most disappointingly—boring.

I’ll keep watching, especially because I had been looking forward to this one so much. I just hope Episode 2 gives me a reason to feel that excitement again.

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Your Sky without the boredom but also without it's charm

I'm watching this after I watched the thai version so my review will be from this pov. For me, the thai version was kinda boring in some places where it went extremely slow with loads of fillers so when I watched this one I really loved it cz it was paced better. All the fillers were removed and the story was kept intact. It being 30 min ep also helped. But as the story progressed I just started missing the charm the thai version had in it, the extremely energetic theerak, the downbad Fah, Teerak's adorable family, the side couple's story they were all missing. The show was good but there's nothing I will miss about it or remember unlike the thai version where i can never forget FahTeetak❤️ although the show did bore me quite a bit.

Also after sometime the story kinda diverts from the thai version probably to cater to the Japanese audience . But yeah pretty decent adaptation. The actors did a good job.

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Stalker or love story?

This is kind of a unique story. As the first episode finishes up, you really don't know if the main protagonist is a good, kind, caring person, or just a creepy stalker. Early on it's done very well in leaving the door open to let us do the deciding on how to perceive Sota.
Having seen Hokuto Matsumura in many past shows, this is absolutely his best work so far. He gives us a strong performance while all the while keeping a mysterious tone over his character throughout the drama. He's what makes this not your normal stalker case, going from sweet and caring to over the top bizarre. Do we root for him to succeed or should he get caught in all the craziness he's been doing for a quarter of a century.
Everything becomes clear as we get deeper into the series, but there is constant mystery of pretty much every cast member in the drama. It's brilliantly written to keep us in suspense right till the last episode ...
BUT, the one negative was the finale. It really felt like a let down to me on how things played out, especially the last 30 or so minutes. It was a bit flat after so many great hours leading up to it. The final couple of minutes corrected for the dislike I had for most of the last episode, particularly that leap forward in time. When I see "one year later" I want to cringe. I'm just never a fan of that. That being said, the final scene between the two protagonists, Sota & Mariko was great. It sort of put the cherry on top of a really enjoyable series. It saved the story, giving us a perfect ending.

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Super Cute Adaptation

This is my first time watching a Japanese adaptation of Thai written work (it’s usually the other way around). I know this is not a remake of the original series, but it is hard not to compare it with the Thai version. Although I liked both, I really enjoyed the Japanese adaptation more.

This part is about the series as a standalone without any comparison to the Thai adaptation of the novel. This was a very cute and enjoyable series. The script had the right amount of drama and quirky humor that I love in Japanese BL series. The cast was great and did an incredible job with their characters. It had super cute graphics throughout and the cinematography was stunning. This also has fun behind-the-scenes pictures and footage during the closing credits. There were only two negative aspects for me. The first one is the amount of flashback scenes. Considering the number of episodes, they could have used their screen time more wisely. The other negative aspect is they really didn’t finish up one aspect of a conflict scenario. It was completely dropped without any resolution.

This part is comparing the Thai adaptation. Again, I know this is not a remake but I would be lying if I didn’t compare both. My main concern was how were they going to adapt this with the time and episode restraints. I was very pleasantly surprise that they did a great job keeping the essence of the story. With the exception of my complaint above, they did a good job trimming out unneeded information and characters. I like that this was not an exact carbon copy. Although both scripts are very similar, I thought the changes they made were good and just enough to make it their own. I also think the changes helped with the story and character progression. I also like how the character Hinata (Teerak in the Thai series) was written. This series managed to portray the innocence of the character without making him act childish.

Random Note:
There is a very charming, but random, cameo from the main leads of the Thai version of the series in episode 7.

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for how bad it looks its actually not that bad

this drama has a little bit of everything, from cringy comedy to deep emotions and feelings. this drama might seem like it is just a bad comedy but it is really not, it has great themes and talk about some good topics most dramas do not talk about while still being extremly funny and very interesting. It was honestly perfect. i put this off for a quite while because i do not like comedy but this is just on a whole different level. i really wished it was a bl or that they kissed atleast cause it is clearly a bl fans bait and that is what i wanted to see but even without any kissing the scenes made me feel excited so it wont get any point off for that ^^

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A True Romance Dilemma

First, let's be clear, I LOVED this series. It was unusual in as far as, we didn’t have to wait 10 episodes in before the "romance" began. We literally saw the entire relationship play out from the very beginning and it wasn't until I watched it that I realized how rare that was. I loved the writing, the acting and the overall chemistry of the entire cast and especially the two main characters. Nothing was wasted or added as a place holder. Every character had a function to move the story forward and it was a joyous 24 episodes.

Now…though the character Luke may have been a "great" boss, he crossed so many boundaries that I really can't even name them all. But let's start with having a relationship with his subordinate. We all know of course that this is a big no no, yet the writer did manage to move us away from the animosity we should have felt for Luke, and allowed us to sympathize with his obvious confusion at being in love for the first time in his life and not knowing how to handle it. This was also balanced by Flora's internal strength and the knowledge that she was an adult and knew what she was doing. It was her choice and if she didn't want to do it, she wouldn't. Some scenes though are really hard to take, considering Luke was very cruel to her many times and, remembering that he was her boss. The writer had to do some heavy lifting by giving us many examples of him being a "good leader" but the fact remains that it was an absolutely inappropriate relationship.

In saying all that, Flora was feisty enough AND he received enough pain at the end to make me a bit more sympathetic to his character and in understanding that, when in love, we all make mistakes.

I have to say this may be one of my favorite all time romances series (maybe my favorite series period) and will definitely be rewatching it.

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Rizz, ruthlessness & Xu Kai. I’m seated.

Being a Xu Kai fan, I’m honestly just pleased to watch him run with this level of rizz and ruthlessness. 😂

The plot has kept me hooked too. I want to know who did what, what happens next, and where this is all going. And yes, the chemistry is there.

Having watched Xu Kai in AMA, Wonderland of Love and As Beautiful As You, I’ve always felt his eyes and subtle expressions are what make him such a good actor. Eight Hundred proved his acting mettle, and with this one, I’m getting to see his range. Comedic, romantic, grey, ruthless… the man clearly has a lot more in his bones than just looking pretty on screen.

Does the show have issues? Obviously. But I find it entertaining, and that’s enough for me to stay invested.

The realism complaints also make me laugh a little. We’ve watched commoners rise through impossible social hierarchies, servants enter nobility, and people fall in love across rigid class structures, but apparently this is where we draw the realism line. 😭

The editing can be rough, sure, but I didn’t find it so bizarre that I couldn’t enjoy the show. I’ve seen plenty of questionable productions get a pass because the leads are pretty or the pairing is popular. So I’m not suddenly getting a PhD in editing over this one. 😂

People can complain all they want. But not every drama has to be either a masterpiece or garbage, and not every actor needs to be compared to prove someone else is “better.”

I’m just here watching Xu Kai serve rizz, menace and range. Let me enjoy my show in peace. 😭

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A light and enjoyable summer movie

Such a fun and refreshing summer movie! I really enjoyed watching it. The story is light and easy to follow, but still interesting, especially when the story takes an unexpected turn. I liked how the plot developed and how the characters’ stories came together.

The main cast did a great job, and I especially enjoyed the chemistry between the characters. The addition of the new cast members was also a great choice and made the movie even more enjoyable.

And of course, I can’t leave out Ryeoun! He looked incredibly handsome throughout the movie, and I really enjoyed his performance. He did such a good job in his role and definitely added something special to the movie.

Overall, it’s a light, entertaining movie that’s perfect when you just want to relax, have fun, and enjoy a couple of hours without overthinking. Definitely a fun watch! 🤍

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