Reviews

Loving Her Across the Years

The plot and story of this drama is already very common. A fiance whose boyfriend prioritize his first love over the FL. The scumbag is cold and heartless. But when the FL found the main ML the CEO the scumbag suddenly became jealous and furious and realized he truly love her. Too late.
The FL is very beautiful and cute. She looks so young for her role of a doctor but she played it well. She is soft and tender one time but strong in personality later on. I love the way she fast discarded the scumbag and never looked back again.
The CEO ML is so loving, caring, faithful and dedicated. He is also very macho and handsome. He is a perfect boyfriend, husband. He prioritized the FL in his life such as being with her always, cooking for her and helping her family financially and medically.
It is also nice that his parents didn't look down on the poor wife but she is immediately accepted with love. There is also less violence in the story.
Glad to see that the focus of the drama is the process of growing affection and love for the ML and the FL rather than the hatred and evil plans of the villains. The ML fell in loved with the FL from childhood and he held on to it until they finally become husband and wife. Very nice.

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When Suicide Becomes a Final Wish

The Canadian TV series "Mary Kills People" (2017-2019) only received a 7.5 rating on IMDb. Could that be the reason the Korean drama "Mary Kills People" is underappreciated?

This is evident in the Mydramalist rating, which was only 7.4/10 since its initial broadcast, and remained unchanged until episode 9. South Korean viewers actually "punished" it with low ratings. Starting with ratings of 3.2% (nationwide) and 3.4% (Seoul), it plummeted in episode 9 to 1.4% (nationwide), and it didn't make it into the top 10 shows chosen by Seoul viewers.

Isn't that sad? Why?

It lacked excitement! Actually, an interesting and terrifying plot was presented at the beginning of the episode. A doctor "killed" his patient. However, when it turned out the patient didn't die after drinking poison, FL's assistant smothered him with a pillow.

After that, the scriptwriters invited the audience to understand FL's decision to euthanize several of her patients.

The characters of each actor are also beginning to be developed, as are the reasons for each role's involvement in the euthanasia practice. Unfortunately, the foundation is weak. Like a puzzle, it resembles a human being who hasn't fully formed yet. Some organs, like some of the fingers, ears, and other parts, are still missing.

FL's character becomes annoying when, in episode 9, the assistant asks to stop their activities, but FL insists!

It's beyond reason to think that her reason is pity for the patient's suffering. She has two teenage children to care for, and their futures must be considered. And then... she knows the police are watching! FL even nearly gets caught while performing euthanasia.

Perhaps the screenwriter's intention was to give the audience a roller coaster ride.

Unfortunately, her efforts are not optimal. The storyline about a criminal doctor (judging by South Korean law) who faces numerous conflicts, including family, professional, and police threats, becomes overwhelmed.

Read the rest of the review at: https://www.maria-g-soemitro.com/2025/09/mary-kills-people-bunuh-diri-keinginan-terakhir.html

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My expectations were not met because of Fu Yu Shu's underwhelming performance

I added this drama on my Plan to Watch list months ago but only remembered to watch it last night after watching Huai Wei's uncle romance drama co-starring Liu Jia Xi. This is my second drama of his so I had some expectations. Unfortunately this drama did not meet my expectations.

What I liked:
1. ML characterisation - Somehow this drama reminded me of kdrama When the Phone Rings because the substitute bride is younger sister of woman betrothed to ML. ML exuded maturity, patience and gentleness and I liked that. He voluntarily offered to pick FL up from work.
2. Styling - Huai Wen looked dashing in his outfits. I liked FL's outfits too. The wedding dress gave a butterfly look while the pink chiffon evening gown was very pretty.
3. Supporting characters - I liked ML's mother & the dog (so adorable).
4. Huai Wen - I really liked his acting here. His facial expressions were on point. When he proposed, there were expressions of love and sincerity on his face.

What I disliked:
1. FL characterisation - Gosh I was frustrated with her demeanor. She had a bland personality. The fact that she was a medical doctor unsure / clueless when it came to intimacy with her husband, threw me off.
2. Romance - ML was always giving (which was good) but FL hardly took any intiative until the last 30 minutes or so of the drama. It turned me off that ML always had to "remind" her of their marital obligations. She was mechanical that I found the intimate scenes awkward.
3. Antagonists - The rival doctor was pathetic.
4. Acting - Fu Yu Shu's performance was underwhelming & stiff. Despite the good kisses, there was no chemistry between her & Huai Wen.
5. Duration - There were many videos on Dailymotion with various length with the longest videl being more than 3 hours long. I chose to watch the one with 2 hours length (medium length) which I later found out it was 1.25x speed during screen recording. Even with this length, I found the drama too slow-paced for my liking.

Favourite scene
When ML proposed for real

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CUTE and RELAXING

CONS:

1. Series feel very slow at the beginning.
2. Fake kisses with mouth moving in the emptiness, no tongue and not-so-clever use of camera angles. The KISSES SUCK. I'm sorry. I like to have good kisses when watching my ROMANCE.
3. Some very irritating characters. They get better but you do have to "suffer them" for quite a number of episodes before they turn around.
4. Shitty ending. As mentioned by everybody just skip the last 10 minutes or so if you want to forget it... Honestly I watched it and it's easily skippable. You won't be missing anything, but it's not as terrible as people have made it out to be, if you're mentally prepared.
5. Useless and unfair breakup in ep 19. FL lied as well, I still don't understand in what way exactly the ML was more at fault.
6. End of Ep 20 to beginning of episode 23. The Show is turning all dramatic for no good reason. It feels like, like in many C dramas, they don't want us to have even the slightest of slightest of second lead syndrome so they had to completely ruin Yi Tian Yu's character. SML deserved a better treatment.

PROS:

1. Adorable and easy to root for leads.
2. Lots of skinship in spite of the fake kisses.
3. Both leads bring the best out of each other, though the FL benefits more from the ML than the opposite.
4. Relaxing show. Not too much angst, but not nothing happening either.

CONCLUSION

I would say the pros count double in my book. Not extraordinary compared to other dramas in the genre... If you don't watch it you won't miss much... But if you do, it's a very relaxing show. As far as Modern drama MLs go, Lin Zhi Hua is top tier.

Best watched without binging at a leisurely pace. Watch this after a shitty day at work/school, it will bring a smile to your face.
Worth the time invested.

Suggested rating: 7.5
Personal rating: 8

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Da Xiao Jie Ta Xin Dong Le(2025) aka: Whispers Of Her Heart is a very good romance miniseries with Wang KaiMu (as Gu Shen / Lu Shi Yuan) and Xu Dan (as Ji Yun Chu) in the leading couple’s role. The cast did a good job bringing their characters to life and the lead couple has a great understanding and trust on each other. Gu Shen has been by Ji Yun Chu for many years acting as her bodyguard and has been loving her silently for a long while. There is some pretty well done action scenes throughout the drama an it was a delight to see how deeply concern Gu Shen was about Yun Chu and vice versa. Their romantic scenes are beautifully done and it is obvious that, even if Yun Chu didn’t have full awareness of her romantic feelings toward Gu Shen, one could not be without the other. Overall, this drama has a nice couple of twists and it is very entertaining, enjoy it!
This drama can be found on YouTube under the caption: “ENGSUB|She Saved him, He Stayed as Her Bodyguard&Friend, yet His Love For Her Surpassed Everyone’s” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dvI4GqYcTsQ)

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It lacks

Bloody Game has a familiar set up with a twist. It should have been much better than it was, and yet it's mediocre. The games are fairly boring and the editing does not create tension nor interest, especially towards the end. Most of the participants were just ok. Their personalities overall wouldn't have brought me back each week. The Pizza Box Crew was intriguing. . I found them interesting and fun to watch.

I think what Bloody Game sorely lacked was direction and writing. It seemed to flounder. The games were too long and boring. That may be an editing failure. I don't know. Perhaps if you like shows like Big Brother where you just watch people in a house, you'll enjoy it more. However, if you prefer shows more like The Mole or Devil's Plan, you will probably feel the same as me and many others judging by the comments on this page.

The case was mid. I don't know if they were generally just boring people, or if the editing was just that bad. Very few players thought strategically. Dex is easy on the eyes so you can't possibly vote him out. Huh? My man, Dex, was wasted on this show. This was the first time I watched a Korean show that had the panel like it was ESPN. At first I was annoyed, but as they began voicing my opinions with and exasperation from scene to scene, I began to look forward to seeing them. It felt like I had a group of people I was watching with.

The music...was there music? LOL I don't know. I didn't pay any attention to it nor did I care. In case you haven't guessed, the re-watch value is nil, nada, non-existent.

Bloody Game is eh. Some of the players were interesting, most weren't. Watch for the Pizza Box Crew. They steal the show, literally.

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Torn Between Duty and Love

I first saw Liu Xueyi on Kill Me Love Me and i liked him there, though not so much when he turned into a lovesick puppy (unlike the novel), so I am expecting he would do well here. I was right. He convinced me as Yuan Zhong, the immortal youth who conquered the Divine Hand forged by Goddess Wu Shuang, later used by his clan to kill the enemy - the expelled divine clan, War Demon - and subsequently suppressed by these elders he held in high regard afterwards cuz they were afraid of his power. Wielding a divine power at a young age, the teenager was eager to please his elders’ and obey all their commands, ending up being imprisoned for 40 years in the name of secluded cultivation. He was released later but not not before the divine hand’s power sealed by a necklace the elders made him wear. He lived as the High Priest of Youhu immortal clan for 20 years, patiently scheming his way out of his elders’ clasp. And having been subjected to 60 years of suppression that left his body frail and sickly, resentment began to form and tainted his pure heart, but one being believed he was a good person - Diety of Craftsmen, Wu Shuang.

I think Tiffany Tang did a terrific job as Diety Wu Shuang. After the great war, primordial Diety Tiehe was injured and went into slumber, his divine hand severed and thrown into mortal world, and the ascension ladder was broken, restricting any dieties from descending into the mortal world in their physical form. The only way out of the divine realm was through the sea of oblivion that would rot away divine powers. Of all of them, only Wu Shuang was willing to go through this sea to retrieve the divine hand she created, as she could rely on her creations instead of her divine power to get through it. Initially tasked to kill Yuan Zhong and retrieve the hand so Diety Tiehe’s primordial spirit can be restored, she later changed her mind as she deemed Yuan Zhong a good person and cannot be killed. She promised the elder dieties that she would accompany Yuan Zhong til he dies naturally before retrieving the hand. And one of the promises include her not to have any emotional attachment with him and reveal her identity as a diety.

Although i did not have high hope when i started watching this drama, i found that the story really engaging, especially when the ML’s continuous suspicion of FL didnt annoy me, even after her mortal body died for him twice. I usually hated prolonged misunderstanding, but this show managed to get me hooked. I especially love FL’s resilience and strength, she would not waver under any circumstances at all. They both did not turn into hopelessly lovesick puppies, which intrigued me even more.

It is also one of the rare shows where the ML needs constant saving by the FL (well she’s supposed to be the superior being anyway) and i enjoy them very much.

It is the first time i saw Tiffany Tang and in some scenes i couldnt help myself from seeing Liu Shishi in her. Didnt they have an uncanny resemblance?

The sparseness of the divine realm weirded me out though, was it due to budget constraint? Or was it something that could only be understood with the novel? There were less than 10 individuals in the divine realm so it is definitely weird compared to other xianxia i’ve watched. And i wonder why their ‘supposedly’ dieties are all with unimaginable flaws like humans? Whats the point of being god then? If a god can succumb to human flaws then theyre most likely not god at all. It’s weird that some people would worship these flawed beings.

The songs are good too and gave quite an impression on me.

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Not the mini drama you're looking for...

Entertaining mini drama, good but not great. Good kisses, fair romance, gorgeous ML, irritating as h*** FL.

The best thing about this drama was Dai Gao Zheng as the male lead Xiao Lang / Li Zi Xing.

If you're looking for a mini drama with lots of teeth, steamy kisses, romance to die for, a gorgeous ML.... 1 out of 4 ain't bad but unfortunately this is not the mini drama you're looking for.

However if you're a Dai Gao Zheng fan and can over look a FL who gets more irritating as the episodes go by, then give this one a try. After all he's hot enough to make you forget what you're watching as you just soak in the pretty.

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Great Acting and Team chemistry, but Writing and Execution could have been better

It doesn’t seem like “The Seven Relics of Ill Omen” has attracted too much attention from viewers. Maybe the novel is not as popular as the other tomb raider series. This is usually not my usual genre and after watching “The Unwanted Detective” with an excellent investigative plot, this drama does fail in comparison.

What I Like about this drama:

1. Acting - The acting is great and it translates to excellent chemistry between the main cast. I’ve seen a few of Song Wei Long’s dramas before and this is his best so far for me. Also, after seeing Ao Rui Peng in a few recent costume dramas, it’s great to see him in a modern one and a very different character. Liu Hao Cun is cute as a button and her eyes can fill with tears whenever she wants it. She’s so much better here than in the disappointing “Derailment”. Wang Yi Ting and Zhang Yi Chi round up the five-some who are just as capable as the others.

2. Friendship/Phoenix Squad - For a drama such as this, the team chemistry is important and you come in expecting a great friendship. I’m happy to say that these guys are different yet complement each other. There’s no misunderstanding, jealousy or hidden agendas. The bromance between Jiang Zhao and Cao Yan Hua is especially fun, and they play off each other so well. Oh, let’s not forget about the chicken and the weird historian. They are a fun addition to the squad!

3. Main romance - The leads might not have a sexy or fluffy/sugary romance, but they are sweet and comfortable. Seeing them together makes me feel warm inside. With all that they go through, a relationship that feels safe, comfortable and grounded seems to be perfect for the pair. I won’t deny I want to see more romantic scenes, but I am only satisfied with what’s given me.

4. Fight scenes - Excellent fight choreography and action scenes by Song Wei Long and Liu Hao Cun. I didn’t know Song Wei Long actually studied martial arts. What was he doing in all those boring costume idol dramas? He needs to be in a wuxia to show us his athleticism. Liu Hao Cun is so petite, yet she’s nimble and quick with her moves. She was beautiful to watch. I wish there were more fight scenes throughout the drama and not just concentrated in the beginning and the end.



What I have Mixed feelings or dislike:

1. CGI/Production - After watching getting used to great CGI and green screen scenes, this drama disappoints. It reminded me of another recent drama that I watched, “The Immortal Ascension”. The sets look fake, the green screens are so noticeable and it’s overall very below average. I was a little confused about the set design. It's a modern drama with all the technology in the world, yet it has a very old school feel to it.

2. Dubbing - Even though I appreciate the actors dubbing their own voices, the actual dubbing is not done well. The movement of the mouths are not matching the lines. And gosh, that annoying Leopard and her English? Every time she speaks, my ears bleed. What is the point of her speaking in weird accented English when she could also speak in weird accented Chinese? If everyone understands her and responds in Chinese, what is the point?

3. Plot (esp ending) - I like how each member of the Phoenix Squad gets their time to shine through the investigation of the relics. We get to understand their backstory and see how far they have come. However, the ending arcs about the 6th and 7th relics, the past and the big villain, are a little confusing. I am not sure if it's my comprehension problem, or the writing seems choppy. Maybe some parts are edited out due to censorship. There’s a lot of explaining instead of showing. And even if they’re showing, it’s not done in a way that’s easy to follow. Of course, this could be a “me” problem.

4. Leopard - In addition to not liking her English, the writing of her character is over-the-top. Yes, she could have been just a psycho, but the way she moves, talks and enlarges her eyes make her seem like a cartoon character. If I am watching a Japanese anime adaptation, I can understand such overacting, but this is not it.

5. Secondary romance - is there a secondary romance? If so, the drama is doing a very poor job in showing that except for that one scene. It could have been developed more to contrast the dynamics of the main couple


I was enjoying the formation of the squad and the mystery of the first 5 relics. But towards the end, the drama lost my attention. “The Seven Relics of Ill Omen” might not have the tightest writing, but the acting and chemistry are good. It offers great fight scenes and very likable characters. It’s not a must watch but maybe for those who are fans of the leads.



Completed: 9/4/2025 Review #620

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