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Disappointing
Interesting plot which may have worked better as a movie. However, for me, the main plot was lost with the distracting nudity and sex thrown in with the secondary characters which was unnecessary. The lead characters then would have then had time to establish more connection and desire before their intimate scene. Without it, it comes off as cheap and trashy. 🤷🏼♀️Was this review helpful to you?
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Questionable, Uncomfortable, Yet Surprisingly Watchable
An age-gap romance between a teacher and her student doesn't exactly sound comfortable when you first hear about it. I actually tried to pass on this drama several times, but the poster and title kept intriguing me. Eventually, I thought, why not? At worst, I could always drop it. Somehow, I ended up finishing it.This is definitely not a drama that will make you feel warm and fuzzy. If anything, it makes you question the characters, their choices, the dynamics between them, and even your own feelings about what you're watching. The drama does try to justify the leads' actions, but I personally wasn't convinced by it.
The ML is 17, almost 18, and still in high school. He's rebellious and constantly gets into trouble, partly to spite his wealthy and controlling mother, who has a lot of influence over the school. Then we have the FL, a 30-year-old new teacher who becomes involved in his life. From the very beginning, the age gap and teacher-student dynamic made the romance uncomfortable for me.
The first few episodes were especially difficult to watch. The ML clearly develops feelings for her, while she initially tries to maintain boundaries but slowly develops feelings herself. It isn't presented as something overtly inappropriate at first, but watching a teacher gradually become romantically involved with her student was still extremely uncomfortable.
And as someone who has been a teacher myself, my teacher mode was working overtime while watching this drama. I usually try to ignore unrealistic school details for the sake of entertainment, but here there were so many things that kept pulling me out of the story.
The bullying storyline was one of my biggest problems. I really dislike dramas where bullying is a major part of the plot, and this one was especially difficult for me to sit through. The private-school parent association setup also felt very fake and forced, mainly existing to give the ML's mother power and influence over the school.
The school itself never really felt like an actual school to me, and the teachers didn't behave in ways that felt believable. The FL's professionalism was another major issue. She repeatedly behaved in ways that I found difficult to respect, and because this is supposed to be a romance, I needed to at least understand or connect with the leads. Unfortunately, I never really did.
The ML also felt very one-dimensional to me. His rebellious behaviour is established early, but I never felt that the character developed enough beyond that. I kept waiting for more depth and complexity, but most of the time he remained the same difficult teenager.
The drama also seems confused about what it actually wants to be. Is it a romance? A crime mystery? A revenge story? It tries to be all three, but the combination doesn't always work. The romance was easily the weakest part for me. I didn't feel the chemistry, emotional connection, tension, or spark between the leads that would make me understand why they were drawn to each other.
Interestingly, I thought the FL's revenge storyline was much more successful. The mystery surrounding her past was kept hidden reasonably well, and I didn't see everything coming. The stalker storyline, on the other hand, was pretty obvious to me from the beginning.
There are also quite a few disturbing twists throughout the drama. Some were predictable, others genuinely surprised me, but many of them left me feeling uncomfortable rather than emotionally invested.
That said, I can't say I hated watching it. I was entertained enough to keep pressing the next episode button, and the story did manage to surprise me at least once. So despite all my problems with it, I still finished it.
Overall, I'd call this an average watch that didn't quite deliver on its potential*. It raises some interesting questions about boundaries, morality, relationships, and how people justify their choices, but the romance didn't work for me, the school setting felt unrealistic, and too many character decisions were difficult to accept.
If you're curious about it, I'd say give it a try and decide for yourself. If the teacher-student dynamic makes you uncomfortable, though, there's absolutely no need to force yourself through it. Just be prepared for a drama that will probably make you uncomfortable more often than it makes you swoon.
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I fell for the high ratings again
Netflix kept pushing this one on me since day one, that and the hig ratings here made me cave in and although I figured from the first episode that it wasn't going to be that good, I kept watching, I got hooked by Luke's hotness I will not lie, it's not the first time I see this actor but it's the first time I've noticed how stupid hot he is so I watched another episode and then another and then another...I am 11 episodes in and I cannot take it anymore this show is insufferable, the most idiotic idiot plot I've ever come across! Why can't they just talk to each other?? Why??
I really wanted to like it, I was determined to finish it but I had it, 11 episodes and they haven't even thought of sitting down and talking to each other. Are they morons? Are they? At this point they've known each other for about 2 years and it's she had a birthday so it's been more or less a year since they started whatever the frik they want to call their messed up relationship, so why haven't they cleared things up?? They should have talked by now and cleared their misunderstandings and then maybe have a fight about something else or whatever, that would make sense but a year into the relationship and she's still using the same old bag for god's sake!!! when she said "He doesn't think I deserve flowers" is when I gave up, When did he say that? he never said that and if you think that way, Why are you still with him?? and then you go and make plans on a Friday without telling him? He's an @$$ but I'm siding with him on that one I've would've been livid!
Luke freakishly hot but still I cannot bear to sit through another minute of this.
IG is now pushing this on me so I had to come back and add a little more on to why this annoyed me so much. On one hand I want to give in and watch a little more just out of curiosity and to gawk and Luke of course but it's too annoying, too frustrating and surely not worth wasting more of my precious weekend on.
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"I believe we just live our lives, and the future will shape what's right for us"
Per said this to Tar when they were deciding their majors for college. It hit me in the best way possible. As a young adult trying to choose a path that leads to the future this line made me stop. Being the indecisive person that I am, having to make a decision that might define the rest of my life feels extremely heavy, but this lightened some of the weight. It might not seem that deep but it resonated with me.This series was really well done- from the story to the characters and actors. Personally I'm not a fan of high school series but this was so well done that I might rewatch it. KitShane showed us how first love feels, KimMon made me giggle every time they came on screen, NatTan (teachers) made me scream because of how cute they were and PerTar gave us crumbs (we need more).
The story was nice. It didnt feel like they were stretching it out anywhere. It was well paced and worked quickly but smoothly at the same time. The actors were amazing as well, their representation of the characters was very well done. You could understand why certain characters made certain decisions (which doesn't always happen). Tar was my favourite character and paul is just tooooo cute (i might be a little biased).
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Watch it - You're Welcome in Advance
As I'm writing this, I want to go back and rewatch... I really liked the chemistry between Su Mu You and Su Chang He. Their brotherly bond that transcends even their desire to survive. I love that nothing broke this bond. That was my absolute favorite part of this drama. Too often we get dramas where there is this bond that is supposed to be closer than family, but when tested, one betrays the other for whatever reason. I am SO glad this wasn't one of them.I guess that's a partial spoiler..."
Gong Jun and Chang Hua Sen really work well together. I loved them SO SO SO SO much. I have seen more of them both in other dramas. I'd seen Chang Hua Sen in Whispers of Fate (a guest role), Moonlight Mystique, Are You The One, and Veil of Shadows. I've only seen Gong Jun in Word of Honor (you gotta watch this drama) before this. He didn't disappoint.
I had previously watched Dashing Youth, so I had some beginner's knowledge into Blood River. Other than the great brotherly bond (I know, I know, my fellow BL lovers will be reading into this bond, but it IS platonic) between them, I really liked the fast-paced action scenes, which balanced the emotional tension of the dialogue-heavy scenes. A romance this is not, and I am glad they didn't throw a useless FL into the storyline just because. The scenes are moody and dark, as fitting for the most feared assassin guild of the realm. Thankfully, I did not find the dark scenes too dark to view (you know, when the director doesn't provide enough lighting for viewers and you're questioning if anything is even going on in the scene? I find those highly irritating- especially when they last a long time. While I can understand the choice, as a viewer, I want to WATCH the drama, not imagine what may be happening in the scene.)
Overall, I recommend this drama if you like brotherhood and well choreographed martial arts scenes with appealing visual effects (plus that on screen chemistry between our guys is peak).
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There is something in their attempt to tell us something
Watched this the first time before I started writing reviews, and re watched it this week. Before I gave it a 9 and while I understand why I gave it a 9 back then I decided to lower it to an 8,5 to be honest I probably should have lowered it a bit more but while it has quite a few annoying elements and I do want to punch a few people it is an easy binge that tries to tell us a whole lot of stuff. They don´t really deliver the whole way in some way while in others they take that extra step to try to show how the villains became the villains they became actually putting the blame where it belongs.Our female lead is however annoyingly self conscious, life has put her down, but it gets to be to much . Our male lead is the perfect melting icicle and the friends and class president are top, top, top. The friendships and bromance are all top too.
Watching this after having seen the veriaty show Rented in Finland gave it an extra dimention, to be honset I had forgoten that Kwak Dong Yeon was in this, but their dynamics in this show really match the one in the vairiaty show.
So its an easy binge, that I may or may not watch a third time but it definitely satisfied that melting icicle
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A very fun show to watch !
After seeing Tomohisa Yamashita's heartwarming portrayal of a happy and eccentric young fool in Nobuta wo Produce I wanted to see more of his work and I was absolutely NOT disappointed !!!I don't usually enjoy watching rom-coms and I was scared it would be cheesy and flavourless but I got really into it. At work I would think about it and smile and giggle like a buffoon as I thought back on the scenes I'd seen the day before. Everyone did a wonderful job and the main leads were astonishingly very entertaining !
Both Satomi Ishihara, starring as the elegant, fun and full of character english teacher and Tomohisa Yamashita, the wise but surprisingly funny and stubborn buddhist monk made me giggle and kick my feet like a little girl when I least expected it. I drooled gallons over the beauty of the traditional absolute haute-couture monk attires and Hoshikawa's character (the monk), although recycling the quite typical orphan trope, was handled beautifully by his actor. The show really moved me at times, and reminded me of small but important good things that we tend to forget in our daily lives.
Even though I think it actually does target a very specific audience and that the ending may feel a bit underwhelming to some, I definitely recommend giving it a shot if you enjoy these types of dynamics and want to laugh on evenings after a bad day at work !
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Keeps you wanting more. Unstoppable once you start.
This is a Drama that kept me wanting more. One of the few dramas that I couldn't stop. Had to finish once I started. I was soooo frustrated that I had to wait for the last couple episodes...would never do that again. I will rather wait until all the episodes are uploaded.Acting was amazing. Chemistry was perfect, and that's what makes a drama worth watching for me. I have cringy scenes that makes me want to turn away or fast forward. Loved this drama. Storyline was Also good, office drama was also good, didn't get bored. Every episode was worth watching. Definitely a re-watch for me.
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Damn but I LOVE this drama
I hesitated on watching this because of the number of episodes and my newness to Cdramas. I finally decided to give it a go last year....and promptly binged the entire thing over a weekend. Since then, Wei Wu Xian and Lan Wang Ji have occupied my mind more often than may be appropriate. I've read the novels. I've watched the anime... I can't get enough of these two.The first episode makes you go, okay...why give me the ending right away? This sucks. But if you just stay with it you will find that this is not, in fact the ending, but the MIDDLE somewhere. We are thrown into the story midway and navigate it from there. It's actually quite brilliant on the writer's part.
My favorite character is a surprise for many...NOT... (at the time I'm writing this, my profile picture is of these two and my name is his) Wei Wu Xian. Xiao Zhan did a phenomenal job. I really love how he portrays Wu Xian- who is a very simple yet complex character. The nuances involved in accurately portraying him is a talent in and of itself. And that waistline! ...I digress. I love his personality and Xiao Zhan brings him to LIFE!
Let us not forget Wang Yi Bo aka Lan Zhan. He has surprisingly few lines, but his presence....that takes some skill to pull off. While WuXian is a yapper, Zhan is stoic silence. They are Yin and Yang and somehow match each other perfectly. His gaze can pierce your soul (or Wu Xian's soul).
Okay. Not me wishing they had the freedom to show the clips that are considered a no-no to the NRTA now. If only they were able to use the loopholes more recent BLs have taken advantage of... Some of those novel scenes being played out on screen with this couple... their chemistry is undeniable and frustrating for viewers because of this- since we novel-readers KNOW what we are missing (*cough cough* the side stories - incense scene in particular). Sigh.
I really liked the twists this story took and the ending mastermind reveal had me like "whaaaaaaaaat... I KNEW IT!" I felt validated. So many scenes I love from this drama.
If you haven't watched it, you should. For those who do and love it: Welcome to the Fandom aka a new obsession. 😊
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Short and Sweet
Another short story, insta love series. I like these types of series between the longer, drawn out dramas. Insta love stories work for me when the couple is fun to watch and this couple fit that for me. I like that Momoko just sees the best of people. It comes across as naive but she knows what she wants and will ask for it and is comfortable with herself (unlike the FL in C&V.) Not much really happens, it just a slice of life story with this couple, being a couple, while hiding their relationship at work. Cute story, worth the watch.Was this review helpful to you?
better than most except .
I really enjoyed the drama. Very consistent story with no sudden change in plots or overused ones. I liked that the FL is not the conventional overpowering, stubborn woman or one in name but waits for her hero to rescue her. Every single part of the story made sense. I would've given it a higher rating if it wasn't for the lousy acting of the ML. First time watching him, so I'm. not sure if he can't act or had bad direction here. Luckily the story is so good an stage other actors' work was strong enough to allow me to bypass this and keep watching.Was this review helpful to you?
Addicting Enemies to Lovers Story
This is one of those dramas where you hear the OST or one of the character names and you are immediately transported into the nostalgic feelings of when you first viewed the drama. Ji BoZai is by far one of the best-written characters out there in the CDrama universe, in my opinion.Hou MingHao is one of my favorite actors. I love just about everything he's done. (I'm sure I would love him in 'I am Nobody' if I could get past my issues with that drama- alas, I couldn't get past the first few episodes and dropped it before he made a real appearance as a ML.) This drama really has everything I love about the E2L trope combined with attractive men with long hair (a new "thing" of mine I didn't know I had until I started watching Cdramas): characters who are opposites but forced in some way to work together in some way, who have that fire on screen chemistry, and character growth of both main leads.
What LITC capitalizes on is both the ML and FL are strong characters in their own right. They're both strong, intelligent, and flawed characters who fit each other so damn well, it's palpable through the screen. I've rarely been SO invested in a lead couple as I have with BoZai and MingYi. The world-building is convincing and moves away from the usual fate of the universe kind of world, instead building on a more relatable socioeconomic division between the 6 realms, decided by the Qingyun Assembly (a high-stakes tournament with only one winner).
Sure, there are people who don't like it, or weren't satisfied with the ending. That's okay. Opinions exist because we are individuals. For me, my rating is 100% reflective of my own experience and thoughts on the drama, uninfluenced by others. I watched it, loved it, and often think about and rewatch it because it was really that good to me.
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If You're Debating on Whether to Watch this or Not, Watch It
I enjoyed everything about this drama. When I initially watched it, I didn't recognize Hou MingHao as I was still pretty new to Cdramas. I had seen him in Dashing Youth and enjoyed his acting style so much that I became an instant fan. FoF came up on my recommended and the edits on social media had me intrigued.I'm glad I decided to watch it. The cinematography is beautifully done. I love the relationships, especially those between Yuan Zhou and Yi Chen. I honestly didn't care much for the romantic relationship that is supposed to exist between Yan Zhou and Wen Xiao. It felt a bit forced- not so much through the acting, but the script. The work better as friends than love interests, and the story isn't diminished by a platonic relationship, in my opinion.
The cast list alone makes this drama worth the watch. They all really outdid themselves. I absolutely love Lester Lin- this being why first drama with him. And Fam, the blessings to my eyes with the adult cast... In addition to Hou MingHao and Tian Jia Rui, we have Yan An (seriously, this man), You Ye, Zhen Xuan, and even Cheng Lei makes an appearance for a few episodes! Ai Mi is a very talented actor and I've enjoyed her in all the dramas she's been in. While I'm not a huge fan of Chen Du Ling, she is a great actor, as well. I'm not too familiar with Pei Is Jing or Lai Wei Ming, though I am interested in seeing them in more dramas.
Outside of the cast, I really did enjoy the story. The world-building was well-done and engaging. I didn't feel the need to skip through any episodes. And I am glad I didn't watch until all episodes had been released, including the special episode, because that meant I could endure the emotional rollercoaster and feel some peace after the special episode <-which you should definitely watch immediately after the final episode. I loved the redemption arc and the complex characters. None of them felt two-dimensional to me.
This is a drama I've rewatched more than once, and will definitely come back to again and again.
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An extreme disappointment
Season 1 was fantastic. I originally thought I would fall off given the amount of flashbacks, yet somehow it managed to keep a sense of momentum going where the past was intertwined with the present (which all took place in one day) and it just never let up. It was engaging, the characters were interesting, and there were multiple angles of the same situation shown, always giving everything a fresh spin.Season 2 abandons everything that made Season 1 unique. We already know the characters so there's nothing to discover. This turns into a traditional chronological narrative with a few flashbacks to set the stage but nothing more.
The characters are now caricatures. The script is full of plot holes and implausible scenarios (not that the first season didn't have them, but at least they felt more grounded). But the worst part is that they took the driving force behind Season 1, discarded it, and replaced everything with new antagonists that have absolutely nothing to offer. There's no backstory, no interaction between them, no evolving relationships. You have the "good guys" in their weapons warehouse pretending to be busy all looking at two monitors, while the "bad guys" are just acting like cartoon villains in their headquarters, laughing and pretending to be orchestrating a master plan on a chess set. It's honestly insulting.
The show basically went from being about one very particular event, to being about battling a global organization as if it were a spy movie. It's just not what any of this was about.
There's one episode at the midway point that is stellar and where it looks like things have turned around and are now going to look up, but that's where everything is immediately discarded again, and from that point to the end, it's like someone just showing up at work only to cash the check, waiting for the imminent layoffs.
Also, there is an extreme lack of interaction between Jian and Jeong. Jeong barely even features this time. Most of the screentime is focused on the main antagonist just acting ridiculous for the sake of "comedy." I really hated all of it.
I could rant for hours but I don't want to spoil anything in the process. Just pretend only the first season exists, and you'll be better off.
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Gamer Girls DO exist
I adored the premise of the story. This was my first modern c-drama, I've mostly watched historical ones, and this was an awesome starting point. It wasn’t perfect; the FL confused me. When she was chatting in game or on the phone with Xiao Nai, she would be flirty and teasing with him. But when he was standing in front of her, she nearly made me think she didn't actually like her. Loved her BFF, Er Xi. All the friend groups were great. It was cute how Xiao Nai friends accepted Bei Wei Wei right away. Cute story, highly recommend.Was this review helpful to you?
