Reviews

I went into this show with zero expectations and was pleasantly surprised. I think this is the first series I’ve watched with Tay and New as the main leads, and wow, I loved it. Their chemistry is insane. They have this natural connection that’s hard to find. I’m definitely going to check out their other series! Plus, we’ve got Mond, Ryu, and Tui. How can you not love that?

I loved how an unexpected meeting turned into this chaotic, messy, imperfect love story that somehow grew into something totally genuine and heartfelt. It’s the kind of story that could literally happen to anyone, which makes it even better. I have to confess, my absolute favorite moment was when the cheating ex got exposed. I also really loved Kanit and Veha’s maturity.

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I watched Mr. Queen and thought I'd give the og adaptation a try because everyone was saying the ending was better and the romance was cuter. I honestly am not sure how exactly people saw this and managed to claim "cute romance" when this man slaps the mc in the face in one of the very first eps. There is no universe where you can claim a cute romance when the man has hit the woman at one point during their relationship, even if it was before the romance started. It doesn't matter that inside the body is a man, because the perception is the same. He thinks he is hitting a woman, his own wife, and someone he already has enough power over without adding his physical strength to it. Sorry, but this is just not it.

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Story of Ming Lan Vibes & I'm Here For It! (Updating this every few episodes!)

his is one of those slow-building dramas that I adore ala "Story of Ming Lan" & while I doubt it can ever beat Ming Lan's #1 place in my heart... I am holding high hopes it can at least compare. Not gonna lie, by the first bit of episode 2, I had already cried my eyes out twice!! THAT's great storytelling/acting/etc.

By Episodes 9-10 I'm truly appreciating the fact that the ML & FL haven't had even a hint of "falling for each other" & it makes sense. The FL is legit still trying to survive and the ML is just cleaning up his mess of a marriage and getting back into being home, etc. The drama is giving me Story of Minglan vibes even more now showing the details of how a servant had to live and hopefully be lucky enough to survive when they were literally property and like the FL's dad said in EP #1 were pretty much "cattle" that could be killed/done with however their owner decided.
In the Story of MingLan, we were seeing how the inner workings of a home with wives/concubines and how they also lived on pins and needles and had to find ways to survive within their limited (by men) world. Here we're seeing the same thing: how servants are trying to survive, still have hope all within their limited (by their owner) world. I adore this kind of storytelling and depth of detail. I see a lot of people commenting about how many "unnecessary" deaths are in the first episodes... but that's the point, isn't it? he FL is living understanding she has really no control over her life/death and that any one of those lost lives could be her next time. High stakes.

EP 11-12 were so good. We see the very intricate scheming of the ML's savior's sister and honestly I find her a bit intriguing. She realizes quickly that she's lost her "hidden agenda" edge with the ML but I don't think that's going to deter her. I find her statement how she'd like to "soar away & not look back" like a man can but all she can do it long for it interesting. She's scheming, smart, and can adapt to the situation/leaves herself a way out (the multiple flowers). This makes her very dangerous.

Another highlight of EP 12 for me was that subtle HINT of the ML finally seeing the FL as an interesting PERSON instead of a clever maid/belonging. & of course... the FL's adoptive parents hushing everyone all morning so the FL could rest was just too wonderful of a scene!!

EP 13-21
These episodes really really sets the pace for our FL. She really shines as a quick-thinker, a compassionate human, etc and we see the ML begin to REALLY fall head-over-heels for her! We also get to see a lot of character growth for many side characters and member of the Lin family as well.

EP 22 -24
So, let's just say I feel so far the only "blip" in this drama happens in these few episodes. Pacing suddenly accelerates and plots/characters come out of the woodwork, and it feels chaotic and messy. Episode 22 up to the 1st half of ep24 was by far the messiest with double kidnapping, new evil family, tons of opera shows/singing, a ghost in a trunk , being sold to a brothel, an opera singing duo on the shore, and yikes so much more it made my head spin. LUCKILY, we got back on track in the very next episode and the pacing literally *click* went back to normal. This makes me think possibly a LOT of editing happened in this spot in the drama, but, I might be wrong.

EP25-30
The edict, the wedding, the slap, and the ML's shamelessness. I was living for it.

The rest of the drama was wonderful and even though a few episodes the pacing suddenly seemed quicker (I'm guessing editing played a part in this) the scene transitions and time skips (which normally I HATE time skips) were done thoughtfully and beautifully. The sheer amount in tiny details in this drama were astounding... the nuances, the deeper meanings.... they all played together so perfectly it made for a drama you'll never forget.

I can't wait to do a re-watch of this drama now that it's completely aired. I know I'm going to notice tons more details I missed the 1st watch through!!

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Little Jane & Big Jane

I love this series so much! I’m sorry, but it’s been a long time since a BL grabbed my attention as much as Big Jane & Little Jane. You really had to be there. The first 6 episode are so good to me.

I absolutely love how intimidating the actor playing Big Jane is. The moment he appears, you can tell there’s something shady about him. Even the camera movements reinforce that feeling and create such a particular atmosphere. It’s really well done.

I also find the series interesting because Big Jane and Little Jane aren’t polished, flawless characters like the ones we usually see. The show clearly highlights their flaws without necessarily trying to make them more likable, and I really appreciated that. The acting is also great, and even the supporting characters manage to leave an impression.

But the psychological manipulation Big Jane puts Little Jane through… that’s something else. He gradually isolates him from his friends until they’re basically spending all their time together. And whenever Big Jane gets upset, the whole atmosphere turns dark. Their relationship is definitely not a beautiful love story: it’s extremely toxic.

I’m sorry to say it, but the time skip really felt like a waste of time. And then the memory loss… I understand Little Jane, but seriously, give us a break.

Little Jane definitely deserves better than Big Jane. But at the end of the day, it’s a series, and their relationship was truly something to watch. As toxic as it was, I had such a great time watching the show, and it kept me hooked until the very end.

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Classic GMMTV fumble

Agree with others typical GMMTV fumble it couldve been so promising. The summary rlly intrigued me but alas it was very predictable.

Did I finish the whole series? Yes. Did i enjoy it? Eh. I found myself skipping through for Dews scenes. His acting was peak. Tee was good I think he could really improve. Not sure if it was the role he was playing but I found Offs acting very painful to watch, I can’t recall him being this bad in other series ive seen him in.

Bromance shit lowkey pissed me off but ill let it slide since DewTees chemistry single handedly saved the series. On the brightside they would kill it in a BL lmaoo.

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Nobody Wins a War

An excellent anti-war film, in the way that perhaps only people who weren't directly involved in it could have made it. And you can see this even through the journey of our two main characters, Xu Fu, a Chinese chef hired to work at a Chinese restaurant in Iraq in 2002, and Ma JunSheng, another Chinese man who was already working there as a sort of manager and also serves as their Arabic and English translator.

The film can basically be divided into:
Running the restaurant before and during the war, the American invasion and destruction and its aftermath, and eventually becoming prisoners, first of the Americans and later of Iraqi insurgents.

Without falling into the black-and-white approach of Hollywood war movies, the film shows the invasion for what it was, basically a brutal conquest, without the usual bullshit of excessive sympathy for soldiers who are in another country to kill, as they themselves put it and have continued to justify to this day: they're all "terrorists." And we follow people who aren't, while seeing through the events and their dynamics how people are pushed into becoming labeled that way, even though the label itself can change depending on the interests of whoever is applying it. For the people being invaded, the terrorists would be the others.

At the same time, the film doesn't romanticize the resistance either. It shows all the brutality and the way innocent people and victims, children and adults alike, are exploited as cannon fodder, ready to be indoctrinated and follow orders from above against the people who killed their entire families.

And it's incredible how, starting with a chef working in a conflict zone, the film opens up such a wide range of ideas and perspectives about the wars we've followed through the news and seen portrayed in so many films about traumatized soldiers, that tired, cheesy and barely convincing cliché when you understand what these productions are actually trying to accomplish. Here, there's a rare level of finesse and delicacy in the way all of this is handled, making the whole experience hit much harder than you'd expect from its premise.

Watch it however you can, because this absolutely has everything that makes a great film worth watching.

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Great character development and relationship building

This show is a modern sci-fi/fantasy mystery featuring a band of friends investigating supernatural phenomenon. I really liked it. It’s not without flaws, but the things it does right happen to be the ones I care about, so I was happy to overlook everything else.

The biggest strength of this show is its characters and their relationships. Each of the five friends has their own personality, backstory, etc. They’re not all equally important, but at least none of them gets sidelined too badly (ie they all continue to get screentime and development throughout). They also have various fun and/or supportive relationships with each other, which all feel quite meaningful.

Luo Ren is probably the most capable and could be considered the leader, and I like how he gives insightful counsel or meaningful commentary to all of his friends (not just eg his love interest). But everyone across the board is just really likeable, especially Mu Dai. Both girls are strong, self-sufficient, and capable- actually tough, not just occasionally doing tough things that happen to get witnessed by a love interest. The main characters are quite relatable, too, which I appreciate. For example, right at the beginning, Mu Dai gets a knife held to her throat and she starts to tear up. She has skills but isn’t hardened- makes perfect sense. Only Luo Ren feels a bit too amazing to be relatable- somebody to be admired instead, perhaps- but he has his weak moments too.

I found the main romance to be quite sweet. I really liked watching it develop, and I thought its setbacks were valid and made me root for them even more. No kisses, if that matters to you. There is a hint of a second relationship but it doesn’t move much for most of the show. I was ok with this, and I think it helps us focus more on the characters’ identities for themselves. This is the right amount of romance for me.

I do, however, feel the actual sci-fi itself is not done that well. The rules don’t seem that structured and a lot of things feel too unsystematic or random. I actually had a long list of complaints as I watched the show, but most became irrelevant after I saw the last two episodes. A lot of things do come together at the end; and, it turns out, things aren’t as random as they at first seem. But I think the right way to handle this would have been to have the characters pointing things out throughout the show (eg “that seems too coincidental”, “why would our blood happen to be special?”, etc) so the audience knows these are acknowledged gaps that will be filled in later.

On top of that, the show still takes generous liberties with logic. How is somebody still alive after being buried under mud for a day? How did they import an entire ROV to the... erm, lake in the middle of a desert? And so on. Some of the CGI and SFX aren’t that great either, which left me raising an eyebrow at a few things.

So even though the mystery does mostly come together at the end, I still feel this part of the show is a bit messy. However, it’s interesting enough, and more importantly, is a good balance for all the other things going on. ie the plot has a good mix of relationship building / character development, and action / adventure / mystery solving. These things together keep the story moving along at a healthy pace.

Actually, a lot of the story arcs are quite emotional, and left me feeling sad long after the plot had moved on. The overall tone is not too heavy, with fun and heartwarming moments as the team interacts and bonds, plus some decent bursts of good humor. But definitely this show packs an emotional punch too.

I struggled a little bit in the last ¼ or so of the show. I didn’t like the second to last story arc too much- the situation felt too dire and it was light on those heartwarming team interactions I like so much. The villain’s English also started to grate on my ears (I selfishly wish they had chosen a different language I don't know, so I could just pretend she’s fluent. Her purposefully accented Mandarin wasn’t any more pleasant to listen to). The last arc does bring things back to the more touching character-driven style, but it’s also short and rushed, and the ending feels incomplete.

The acting is very good in this show. I thought it’s very natural, and everyone has a distinct and appropriate style. I think the standout performance is Li Haocun as Mu Dai, with some really impressive scenes in the middle, but everyone across the board does a good job. I also have to praise the casting, like everybody looks perfect for their role.

I like the styling (makeup, hair, and clothes)- everyone looks good- and the sets are not bad. Some of the sceneries are quite imaginative, like towns in deep forests or sprawling deserts. This show also has some wuxia-style fighting, which took me some getting used to for this modern tech-y setting. If you tell me some modern kid has 8 years of martial arts training, I wouldn’t be impressed, so I wasn’t expecting to see Mu Dai fly like that. It grew on me though, and a lot of the choreography is fluid and pretty. I also like how some of the fights are set to slower OST tracks, giving a really artistic feel.

In general I really like the music. The BGM does a good job setting moods, although the cheerful music is a giveaway for some scenes. The OST probably wouldn’t have been my favorite outside the show, but all the songs work really well for the moments in which they’re used, and create good emotional effect.

Overall, this show has enough sci fi elements that make me want to hold it to those standards, and I don’t think that part is quite there. A good sci fi has consistent, logical world building, and mind-blowing reveals in which everything clicks together. This one is a bit messier, the entire show strung together by a confusing mystery with random clues. Still, the character development and relationship building are very well done, and the different story arcs tell touching tales, ultimately resulting in a show I very much enjoyed and binged in a few days.

P.S. I checked out the webnovel. It handles the scifi/mystery a lot better, with more structure, and some plot holes are explained too. But I prefer the version of the characters (and their relationships) in the show. There are some nice interactions that didn’t make it in, though, so I still found the novel to be a fun read.

ENDING – READ AHEAD ONLY IF YOU WANT TO KNOW, CONTAINS SPOILERS





The ending is pretty happy. Aside from a few side character deaths earlier in the show (Mu Dai’s sifu is probably the last one), everyone makes it out alive and they are all happy and together again at the end.

Still, although this ending is not framed as a cliffhanger, I think it’s incomplete enough to be not fully happy, and not that satisfying either. Many things are still unresolved- I’m actually not sure what exactly happened at the end or how they got out (plus the final showdown is a little anticlimactic), but they certainly didn’t solve the problem for good. It almost feels like a setup for a sequel, but I don’t see any hint of one in the works.

MORE MAJOR SPOILER AHEAD





This is just a general discussion.

Of all the tragic tales, I was most affected by the ones about the primate person and about Mu Dai’s mom. With the primate, at least Ao Ruipeng was as sad as I was. With her mom… I thought the actress did such a great job showing first the self-centered, negligent, but confidently promiscuous mom in Mu Dai’s memories- and then suddenly in a single flashback, a battered woman in an abusive relationship who realizes in an instant that she can’t keep a child in that environment. She was a bad mom for sure, but I think she gave up her child for the right reasons, and playing the villain all these years later is her final act to set Mu Dai free.

And then we have Leopard. Now, why didn’t he just splatter her all over with his own blood in the park fight scene, and be done with it?

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Just not my drama

Just not my drama.

I wanted to watch this drama because of Zhang Ling He, but to be honest, the story was so lame and unclear. It was also way too dark for me, and I couldn’t enjoy the storyline at all.

I watched until episode 20 and then stopped. After being away from it for almost a month, I finally forced myself to continue and finish it, hoping that at least the ending would be beautiful.

But nope. Not at all. 😩

Even in the last episode, so many people had to die. Seriously… why?! I was hoping for a satisfying ending, but instead, I was just left wondering what I had been watching. 😂

I would honestly rather spend my time watching other dramas.

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wherein the plot serves the characters more than the characters serve themselves

I did not go into Blossoms of Power expecting to be blown away, particularly since I had just finished Blossom (which I believe shares a production team/one director) and came out of it with middling feelings. But this drama was... certainly something! Entertaining, yes, and quite fun to watch but not anything spectacular.

What stuck out to me most was the extreme sense of characters driving the narrative - not necessarily in the sense that a character's actions move the plot, but rather the plot moves itself to serve and facilitate character development, particularly of our main leads. Most conflicts were resolved within an episode or two, and the interconnecting narrative threads were very thin, resulting in a plotline that is clunky and episodic. What should have been important narrative points were often communicated through dialogue discussing events off-screen (see: the northwestern conflict, an army of 3million if I remember correctly, being defeated by Shen Xihe's brother, which we learn of through a letter). Quite early on, I felt as though the purpose of the plot was purely to serve and facilitate the main characters' relationship development and provide hurdles for them to stumble and cushions for them to fall on. Stakes were mild where they should have been high and it made the wider world feel empty.

Xiao Huayong's illness was the primary connective thread but this was not nearly explored enough to make it compelling. Without spoilers, the 'whodunit' of it all was anticlimactic and predictable despite a complete lack of foreshadowing and/or hints throughout - of course it's possible I just missed these, but I do not care to rewatch and find out - plus, as with many 'sickly' MLs, his illness seemed to wax and wane in an awfully convenient pattern of 'I am extremely strong despite my illness' 'I am actively dying' 'my fiancee's dad is in trouble so I'm strong again' whenever suited.

The story as a whole was thematically void, other than some half-formed ideas of power, lineage, and loyalty to which the ML was an unfortunate victim of. I won't even speak on the final 'reveal' concerning the ML because it is still so ridiculous why they would choose to cheapen what was a fairly tearful finale with such an inexplicable 'twist.'

What made this drama worth finishing, however, was the characters. For all this show lacked in plot, it made up for in rich and diverse character dynamics.

The FL pursues power tyrannically to prevent the tragedy of her previous life - this certainly made an impression and I was glad to see that, although her character softened somewhat over time, her ruthlessness to her enemies remained. Meng Ziyi's acting was not hugely dynamic, but her portrayal of Shen Xihe's cold cutthroat nature definitely made an impact at the outset, and I was relatively impressed with her more emotional scenes also - one in particular reflected well the idea of such a collected and meticulous person with the flood gates set loose. In terms of writing, Shen Xihe definitely could have had clearer motives - she wants a foothold of power enough to protect herself and her family, but it seems to be an unspoken thing that she wants more than just safety, which I wish they had delved into more explicitly. Such ruthlessness would not be fuelled by the need to protect, not when her refusal to bend often put more targets on her and those around her. This is something that, had the plot been more substantial, could have been woven into a very compelling character arc. The foundations are there, but unfortunately the execution fell short.

As for the ML, he has spent years secretly gaining a more understated kind of power in order to find the truth of his poisoning, which again the plot fails to deliver on. We know he is investigating the culprit, but aside from speaking to a few prisoners and receiving a few letters, this investigation is not ever shown on screen. Of course, he is a weak and forlorn prince who cannot be seen wielding the power he has, so he has others to do it for him, but even that could have been woven into a significant plotline. Regardless, He Yu's acting was a delight to watch and made Xiao Huayong such a fun character, the only one who truly made me laugh. His early interactions with Xihe were such a joy to watch, two great minds going head to head, and later as his feelings grew, I began thinking I was secretly watching a comedy. It's safe to say, I began watching for the FL, but the ML was the one that kept me around. I have no complaints about their relationship development, though I wouldn't say it was the main thing I was there for.

That would instead be - Bu Shulin. What a character. From the moment she appeared I knew I would not be able to drop this show - honestly, I would recommend watching purely for Bu Shulin and Cui Jinbai because these two were such a joy from beginning to end. Electric chemistry. I was surprised that, censorship-wise, they were able to get away with a man professing his love to someone who looked visually male (let alone an off-screen sex scene before we ever saw Bu Shulin dressed as a woman), but it definitely seems like a step forward! In a world of such anti-queer censorship, a crossdressing character is such an excellent vehicle to explore gender and sexuality and, although they could not be too explicit in it, Bu Shulin's conflict over wanting to live as herself but not wanting to give up the freedoms that being perceived as a man gave her hits the nail right on the head. Unfortunately these characters did not get the screentime that they deserved, but by the end I felt I knew them far better than I knew either of our main leads, and I was most definitely more endeared towards them.

Finally, aside from Bu Shulin, there was one other character that truly stuck out to me, though judging from some other responses, this may be a controversial opinion. I found Prince Xin, Xiao Changqing, to be fascinating. He was a character in constant conflict with himself. His love for his brothers (most obviously Prince Lie/Xiao Changying, but later on also Xiao Huayong, even if he himself is conflicted and loathe to admit even if it is true) vs his devotion to the returned Gu Qingzhi (regardless of how she feels on the matter) is the most obvious, but it runs deeper.

Prince Xin, groomed for the throne, primed to carry the weight of the Empire; and Xiao Changqing, husband and mourner. Doomed from the start, really. He was raised to hold power and protect it, make the horrible choices that a ruler has to make, and that is the first thing we see him do - leading the execution of the Gu family, trying to protect Gu Qingzhi and instead stifiling and suffocating her, so that her final act of autonomy is to orchestrate her own death. As Shen Xihe says, what he deems as 'love' and 'protection' is instead 'possession.' She kills herself to shift blame to those who harmed her family, but I also think a part of it is punishment to this terrible husband of hers. You have tried so hard to keep me, but no amount of power can move death. Or so she thought!

When it comes to reincarnation (or adjacent in this case) plotlines, there should always be a reason. 'So FL can meet ML and fall in true love' is fine, if not a bit stale; 'redemption for the failures of her previous life' is definitely the most obvious driving force for our FL. Gu Qingzhi meets the old Shen Xihe on a bridge in, presumably, the underworld - Chinese mythology is not my expertise, but bridges are often representative of progress, transition, and moving on. The previous Shen Xihe moves on into the afterlife - Gu Qingzhi chooses to return to the mortal world. It's a similar issue to that I had with her character overall, in that I wish the narrative would be more upfront about her selfishness and greed, as it's my interpretation that she did not choose to return solely for redemption, but also for revenge. And she certainly gets it. (Also controversial, but the small kindness she showed him in the end, I truly did like. Their relationship was so fascinating, and for all the wrong he did to her, that she can offer such sympathy shows a breadth of character that many 'cold' characters are deprived of.)

He is a terrible person who gets what he deserves (the writing falls apart strikingly at the end, but if one ignores the huge narrative gaps, there is a semblance of what they were trying to get across). He was truly destined for madness, and his relationship with our FL is a mirror for what his rein as Emperor would have been - power turned to possession and devotion turned to obsession. Again, a thrilling idea failed by poor execution. Xu Zhengxi was by far my favourite actor of the entire show. He also plays another fantastically insane character in Whispers of Fate, which, for all its many flaws, I have to recommend if only for the cast's excellent performances.

Overall, a flimsy and far-away plot, upon which a series of could-be fantastic characters bob along, while the writers throw rubber ducks and foam pool noodles in their path. Nothing mind-blowing, but full of potential!

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Lots to love, but needed more development before the end

NO spoilers section:

There were some aspects of the characters and story that I thought were interesting and generally handled well, but suffered for not being distinct enough from tropes I'm tired of seeing. I always like when characters have complex feelings and struggle to figure out whether they're platonic or romantic, but I dislike that many BLs still shy away from the word "gay" or even letting their characters say they probably like men in general, not just one specific man. To the show's benefit, I do think they took Natsuki liking a man very seriously and that helped me forgive them a bit. Also, in a story where the characters can read somewhere on the aro or ace spectrum, it's kinda nice to avoid labels because a hard definition can feel like its limiting the depth & complexity of their feelings. But again, because of the world we live in, forgoing a label means leaving room for deniability. These characters aren't gay, they just happen to like this one man, and they aren't aro/ace adjacent, they just rarely develop romantic feelings and don't seem to pursue physical contact.

I will say, the last point is probably a result of the lead actors being in the same idol group. I think a relationship can be well-written and developed without a focus on physical/sexual connection, but I do think their relationship suffers from so few physically-charged moments. I can tell these actors can have physical chemistry, but the show won't let them and it's a bit frustrating. Even for a relationship where the line between platonic and romantic is blurred, I think close physical contact (even avoiding contact that is outright sexual/romantic) can do a lot for their development and showing how much they like each other. I'll talk about this later, but I think I could've forgiven the lack of physical contact if they had more time to spend on the main relationship and the character's feelings in the last half of the show. Really, they just needed more episodes... The actors do a great job expressing their characters' feelings when they're given scenes that focus on them, but there's just not enough of those toward the end, especially between the leads specifically.

In general, the acting is amazing in this show and the characters are great. All the side characters are fun to watch, and Natsuki's family dynamic was really a highlight for me. I honestly loved how important they were to the story, especially his sister Rio. (Not just in relation to the initial premise!!) She's honestly so awesome and might be my favorite character. I loved how much focus the family got in the last half of the show, even though it takes away from the main relationship developing. This is where the show shines, in terms of showing each family member's reaction to Natsuki liking a boy and the narrative taking it so seriously. Homophobia and bigotry aren't absent from this world and I think they strike a good balance between addressing that and keeping things more lighthearted. Natsuki's family loves each other so much, which makes the tension of not knowing if that love is actually unconditional hit harder. I also didn't mind the side plot with the parents, since it leads into the problems caused by their dad's traditionalism, though I would really really love if there was like 1000% less AI in this show.

And that's my biggest complaint, even more so than the rushed last episode: There's so much AI used by characters in the show. And I can tell the writing is genuinely trying to show it as a normal helpful tool, even though every time Natsuki uses it, it gives him bad advice that sucks and has a huge chance of pushing him into an illogical anxious freakout. I genuinely laughed out loud when he asked it about love multiple times and it kept saying "a man and a woman blah blah blah." That instance was almost definitely the writing team doing it on purpose, but it's so ridiculous to be cognizant of the problems/biases with predictive language models, and then continue to earnestly show characters using it. Not to mention the one scene with obviously AI-generated portraits at a party, and another scene where characters praise AI for helping one of them talk through and understand more about someone being gay.

It's also just so difficult to fully enjoy some parts of this show when I know AI could be anywhere. Is the music good? What if it's AI? What about that interstitial animation? That cute dog art? How much of this script was written by humans??? It makes me so mad. It's terrible because there's so much I liked about this show, and I have to believe there's so much honest human work put into this production, but some people working on it decided the environmental impact and loss of work for other creatives was okay to make their lives a little easier or cheaper. Every bit of television and film we get is the product of countless people doing countless jobs, and I hate seeing that work devalued by AI. If the only reason this show was well-written is because it was half-written by AI, I'd rather watch a version written terribly by humans, because the same human actors, directors, cinematographers, ADs, ACs, boom mic ops, sound mixers, lighting techs, electrical techs, production designers, script supervisors, PAs, editors, sound designers, VFX artists, graphic designers, and dog handlers will still be there trying to make the best show they can. If it turns out terrible, so what, that's just being human, but I can easily say removing the AI would've only improved this show.

In conclusion, I thought this one was worth watching, but it didn't stick the landing for me with the main relationship. They handled a decently large supporting cast for a BL very well, and I think the focus on Natsuki and his family was enjoyable enough for me to recommend this one as more of a coming of age gay story than a romcom, with elements of melodrama. I'm not sure I'd recommend supporting officially with how I personally feel about the AI stuff, though.



Okay, this is the SPOILERS section:

First: I'm on Rio's side and I think she's so funny. I might rewatch the show just to see how she and Sota act in the first half knowing she's not actually dating him lol. She's such a fun character to me because she's a caring but annoying big sister and a nice person, while also being genuinely kind of insensitive and free-spirited. I feel like I rarely get to see women like that and I love it about her. When she took Rock out without telling anybody, I was so mad, like girl, your crybaby little brother was freaking out. They're clearly all used to her being like this but I would've been mad at her for like a week if that was my dog. But again, the characterization is great because when she reveals he's not her boyfriend, I was immediately like "Oh my god it makes so much sense." Not that she's been obviously just a friend, but that she'd think it's totally fine to call him "boy friend" in English and their hangouts "dates" and then not get that people think they're dating. She's just weird like that and doesn't explain things and it's awesome.

Anyway, as I've already mentioned, my other main problem with the show is the development of the main relationship, especially in the latter half. I think what it really needed was at least two more episodes added to the length of the show. To me, the main three things (simplified) to spend time with in the show to reach a satisfactory conclusion are 1. Natsuki's feelings 2. Natsuki's family and 3. Sota's feelings. We get a good amount of focus on the first two, but it never really feels like we get to develop the last one.

The first section of the show (episodes 1-5) focuses mostly on Natsuki's feelings, especially in relation to the initial conflict of "Oh shittt I can't like my sister's boyfriend!!!!!" It also sets up his family's dynamic and builds his relationship with Sota to a point where you can tell Natsuki likes him, but Sota's feelings are still a mystery and none of their interactions have really gone beyond strong platonic feelings. I honestly feel like this section is pretty well-paced and it ended with me being so anxious for how things were going to play out, and really hoping they'd get more into Sota's feelings

The next section of the show (episodes 5-9) is defined by Natsuki's family and the immediate aftermath of Natsuki's confession to me. There's a little bit of time spent with the main relationship, but the only actual development comes entirely from Sota responding to Natsuki's feelings and them deciding to try being close in an unlabeled way. Most of the focus is on Natsuki's relationships with his family members and their discovery of him liking Sota/their reactions. This is also where the side plot about his parents' anniversary is wrapped up. Sota's feelings remain pretty undecided, even in the scene where he helps Natsuki try to explain things to his dad. I also thought this section was mostly well-paced, though it has the most egregious uses of AI. I would've liked more development with the main relationship and the anniversary side plot to wrap up faster, but if they'd had time to get into it after this, I would've been fine with what they did do. I'm glad we got a bit more Sota time in this section, but it still wasn't enough to feel like I got a good sense of his feelings or how they've grown.


And then we get one episode dedicated to Sota going abroad to England, his birthday, and whether their relationship will develop or be lost. And they kind of choose neither? Which to be honest, I would've been fine with, if it had felt like their relationship had developed at all before this. The going abroad thing is such a trope, but I wouldn't hate it here if we'd spent more time with it. All of my complaints are just "Can we please get some more time spent on this?" Everything they've spent time on, I feel like they stuck the landing on pretty well, so I don't even feel like I need to give a specific writing direction. I just think if we turned one episode into three or four, they could've spread out everything that was in that last episode, added more development to the actual relationship and shown Sota's feelings evolve, and then ended it the same way. It'd give us and the characters more time to feel the pressure of "England" on deciding their feelings before then, make the birthday scene more impactful with more tension before it or time for them to be alone during it, build up to Sota running away from his feelings more, and give us an actual unlabeled relationship to end on. That's all I'd need for it to be much more satisfying, but sadly it's too late and we got the version with 10 episodes instead of 12.

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A king, whose family is being picked off one by one by the Spirit of the Lake, summons a young shaman. He is joined by the king's daughter, who possesses the gift of hearing the voices of spirits.
In a *Stranger Things*-esque twist, the shaman enters the lake to reach a parallel underworld (a mirror realm); he battles spirits there, returning each time increasingly weakened.
The resentment of the slain spreads, tethering the spirit to the mortal realm and fueling its vengeful nature.
Yet, the deaths are largely caused by human poisoning.
A complex plot involving poisonings and misdeeds committed by fathers, mothers, grandmothers, and children—princes and concubines alike.
Top-notch acting. These are far from easy roles.

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"My Bias, My Boss" (2026): Great Leads, Wasted Potential

I really like both leads, but they never got a real chance to shine. Even with 12 episodes, this should have been a movie — the plot isn't strong enough to fill the runtime.

The core idea is good. As a K-pop fan, I loved that the drama showed a fangirl's feelings as admiration, not romantic love. But the writers played it safe with every cliché — the idol who noticed her for years, the ex returning, the spy subplot, going abroad and coming back. It's 2026. Where's the creativity?

I had high hopes for Kang Hoon after Dear Hyeri, but the script doesn't give him enough to work with. The FL is a pleasant surprise — she gives off a Park Bo Young vibe. I hope they both get better rom-com scripts next time.

The chemistry works, especially from episode 5 onward, and both actors carry the show. But the back half wastes its best idea — the idol-fan connection — and reduces Lee Chan to a love-triangle tool. The conflicts are predictable, and the warmth of the finale comes from the actors, not the writing.

Verdict: Fine for a brain-off watch if you're here for the leads. But don't expect anything fresh or original.

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It had a lot of potential, it wasn't what I expected!!

When I saw the pilot trailer, I honestly loved it. It was what made me have such high expectations for this series. The dark atmosphere, the mystery surrounding Jane Patrick, and the way he was portrayed as almost demonic, dangerous, and difficult to figure out really caught my attention. It looked like it was going to be a different kind of BL, with a darker, more mysterious, and psychological story. It was exactly the kind of story I had always wanted to see.
Then the official trailer came out and, honestly, I was disappointed. I felt like there was a pretty big change from what the pilot had made me expect. Patrick no longer gave me that same feeling of mystery and danger, and the overall tone of the story seemed much lighter. That was when I started having doubts about the adaptation.
On top of that, I was also reading the novel throughout this time, so I inevitably developed a much clearer idea of the story and its characters. And as I watched the series, the comparison became more and more obvious.
I never expected the adaptation to be exactly the same as the book. I know a series needs to make changes and adapt certain things for the screen. The problem, for me, was that they didn't just change events; they also changed part of the essence of the characters.
Patrick, for example, feels much darker, more calculating, possessive, unpredictable, and morally ambiguous in the novel. The relationship also has a much more intense and, at times, considerably more toxic dynamic. That side of P'Jane is one of the things that makes the story interesting, because he isn't simply the typical protective character — he has a much more extreme and difficult-to-justify side. In the series, I felt that all of this was softened quite a lot, and Patrick ended up being portrayed as much more emotionally accessible.
I also noticed changes in Jennalee and, especially, in the dynamic between the two of them. In the novel, the whole concept of wishes, the price that comes with them, the negotiation, the power dynamic, and the rule about not getting emotionally involved create a tension that I found really interesting. The series keeps the basic premise, but I feel like it develops it in a much softer way, and some of that tension — and that darker, more toxic side of their relationship — gets lost.
So, for me, the problem wasn't simply that “the series wasn't faithful to the book.” An adaptation can change many things and still work. What happened here is that the changes ended up affecting exactly what I liked about the novel and what initially caught my attention in the pilot.
Even so, I wanted to give it a chance and not judge it only because of the trailers or my expectations as a reader. And I can admit that there are things I genuinely enjoyed. The chemistry between the leads is undeniable, and the soundtrack is beautiful. There are also moments where you can really see how much potential the story had.
However, the story as a whole didn't convince me. I felt that there were many plot holes, unnecessary scenes, and quite a lot of filler, and that some of the adaptation choices didn't really contribute much to the development of the characters or the plot. At times, I felt like they were taking elements from the novel without managing to convey why those elements worked in the first place.
I think that was my biggest disappointment: the potential it had. The pilot made me expect a darker and more mysterious story, while the novel made me expect much more intense, complex, and toxic characters and dynamics. But the adaptation ultimately took them in a direction that personally didn't work for me.
The last episode was okay, but it didn't really change my overall impression.
Overall, Don’t Be Too Emotional has great chemistry, a beautiful soundtrack, and a premise with so much potential. But for me, the adaptation lost part of the novel's essence, softened Patrick's personality too much, and failed to maintain what had initially made me fall in love with the pilot trailer.
I don't think I would rewatch it, but I can still recognize its strengths.
When I saw the pilot trailer, I honestly loved it. It was what made me have such high expectations for this series. The dark atmosphere, the mystery surrounding Jane Patrick, and the way he was portrayed as almost demonic, dangerous, and difficult to figure out really caught my attention. It looked like it was going to be a different kind of BL, with a darker, more mysterious, and psychological story. It was exactly the kind of story I had always wanted to see.
Then the official trailer came out and, honestly, I was disappointed. I felt like there was a pretty big change from what the pilot had made me expect. Patrick no longer gave me that same feeling of mystery and danger, and the overall tone of the story seemed much lighter. That was when I started having doubts about the adaptation.
On top of that, I was also reading the novel throughout this time, so I inevitably developed a much clearer idea of the story and its characters. And as I watched the series, the comparison became more and more obvious.
I never expected the adaptation to be exactly the same as the book. I know a series needs to make changes and adapt certain things for the screen. The problem, for me, was that they didn't just change events; they also changed part of the essence of the characters.
Patrick, for example, feels much darker, more calculating, possessive, unpredictable, and morally ambiguous in the novel. The relationship also has a much more intense and, at times, considerably more toxic dynamic. That side of P'Jane is one of the things that makes the story interesting, because he isn't simply the typical protective character — he has a much more extreme and difficult-to-justify side. In the series, I felt that all of this was softened quite a lot, and Patrick ended up being portrayed as much more emotionally accessible.
I also noticed changes in Jennalee and, especially, in the dynamic between the two of them. In the novel, the whole concept of wishes, the price that comes with them, the negotiation, the power dynamic, and the rule about not getting emotionally involved create a tension that I found really interesting. The series keeps the basic premise, but I feel like it develops it in a much softer way, and some of that tension — and that darker, more toxic side of their relationship — gets lost.
So, for me, the problem wasn't simply that “the series wasn't faithful to the book.” An adaptation can change many things and still work. What happened here is that the changes ended up affecting exactly what I liked about the novel and what initially caught my attention in the pilot.
Even so, I wanted to give it a chance and not judge it only because of the trailers or my expectations as a reader. And I can admit that there are things I genuinely enjoyed. The chemistry between the leads is undeniable, and the soundtrack is beautiful. There are also moments where you can really see how much potential the story had.
However, the story as a whole didn't convince me. I felt that there were many plot holes, unnecessary scenes, and quite a lot of filler, and that some of the adaptation choices didn't really contribute much to the development of the characters or the plot. At times, I felt like they were taking elements from the novel without managing to convey why those elements worked in the first place.
I think that was my biggest disappointment: the potential it had. The pilot made me expect a darker and more mysterious story, while the novel made me expect much more intense, complex, and toxic characters and dynamics. But the adaptation ultimately took them in a direction that personally didn't work for me.
The last episode was okay, but it didn't really change my overall impression.
Overall, Don't Be Too Emotional has great chemistry, a beautiful soundtrack, and a premise with so much potential. But for me, the adaptation lost part of the novel's essence, softened Patrick's personality too much, and failed to maintain what had initially made me fall in love with the pilot trailer.
I don't think I would rewatch it, but I can still recognize its strengths.


*Also, it was not explained much that his status as Big Jane and the blood pact that he 'Help' was not explained much.

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