Reviews

A major disappointment! Even Choi Soo-young couldn't save this drama.

A successful, mature lawyer who is blindly and obsessively in love with an idol? That’s simply not believable. If the main character were a teenage girl, I could understand and accept this behavior. But we’re talking about a serious, responsible, and professionally accomplished adult lawyer who becomes deeply depressed for three days just because her idol dating news is revealed. This level of emotional immaturity makes no sense in context.

The main character is full of contradictions and lacks psychological consistency, which ultimately makes her feel unrealistic and poorly written. Her characterization is neither coherent nor convincing.

As for the crime/legal storyline—it completely falls apart. Not only does it fail as a crime plot, but it doesn’t even work as a decent legal drama. The narrative is messy, underdeveloped, and riddled with plot holes.

The only reason I continued watching this series was Choi Soo-young, who—despite not being widely recognized by international audiences—was my favorite childhood member of Girls' Generation (SNSD). Unfortunately, even her presence couldn’t save this drama, and the show ended up being a major disappointment for me.

The male lead, Kim Jae-yeong, delivered a very weak performance as well. I understand that the production likely had a limited budget and couldn’t afford stronger casting choices, but that doesn’t excuse the overall lack of quality.
Ultimately, the story itself is extremely poorly written—disjointed, incoherent, and full of narrative flaws.

I know many viewers enjoyed this drama because of the fan–idol romance fantasy, but personal enjoyment of that trope does not justify high ratings or indicate strong overall quality.
Overall, this drama was genuinely disappointing.

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Queer-positive and realistic portrayal of family relationships

This film is based on the real-life story of Singaporean drag queen Sammi Zhen. And it’s not just a film; it is a heartfelt depiction of family relationships, the responsibilities of caregiving, and the journey of self-acceptance for LGBTQ+ individuals.

"A Good Child" has made a significant impact on audiences, garnering positive reviews for its nuanced exploration of complex themes. The film does not sugarcoat the challenges of caregiving or the complexities of family dynamics or the pain of reconciliation between an estranged parent and their LGBTQ+ child. It confronts these issues head-on, offering a raw and candid look at the messy, beautiful, and sometimes painful process of coming together as a family. This authenticity is what raises this film above a typical family drama, making it a powerful and thought-provoking piece of cinema.

Richie Koh's portrayal of the drag queen Jia Hao is nothing short of outstanding. Koh brings depth and complexity to the character, capturing both the flamboyance of Jia Hao's on-stage persona and the vulnerability of his off-stage identity. Koh's performance is both captivating and moving, elevating the film to new heights. And the rest of the cast did just an amazing job as well.

One of the strengths of this film lies in its attention to character development and how their stories intertwine with the main conflict. Each character, from Jia Hao to his estranged brother and mother, is given the space to grow and evolve, adding layers of complexity to the narrative. The relationships among the characters are deeply explored, and the honesty in portraying the real struggles faced by the characters creates a more profound and impactful viewing experience.

In conclusion, "A Good Child" is a standout Singaporean film that deserves to be recognized for its queer-positive and realistic representation of family life. Through its strong audience resonance, outstanding performances, and honest exploration of complex themes, the film shines as a beacon of quality cinema. It’s a must-watch for anyone looking for a moving and insightful film.

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So much potential, wasted on a truly horrible script.

The cast is fantastic. Love both leads and the supporting cast is excellent as well. In particular, Guan Xue Ying is brilliant at making you hate her psychotic unrequited female rival character. The production quality is good. Some of the martial arts scenes are fantastic. Indeed there are plenty of enjoyable entertainment moments scattered throughout this series.

But the script is god-awful. The writers rely heavily on a relentless stream of cliche' plot contrivances, one after another and the plot loses all credibility again and again. The villains never truly get punished despite getting caught. They just keep coming back again and again repeating the same stupid schemes. And no happy ending either.

The chemistry between the leads is fantastic --- when they actually get to be together! But the plot gimmicks employed by the writers just bury all that goodness. The chain of absurd, improbably events , one after another, that the writers contrive drag what should be short story arcs of 1 or 2 episodes out to 8-9 or more episodes!! It's easy to forget just what led to where the story ends up at various points. In particular, the long stretch of contrivances they use to keep the main leads apart is just crazy and drags across a huge span of episodes.. The script leans heavily into plot-induced stupidity again and again to create unnecessary drama events that just drag the resolution of larger plot lines to a slow, frustrating crawl.

I'm so disappointed. I really like the premise of this story. And Li Qin and Qin Hao both are wonderful to watch in their scenes. But I can't recommend this show. It's just too exasperating and the end-game payoff is just not worth enduring it.

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A troubled palace

This drama looks pretty but is lacking in some key areas as far as storytelling. The drama simultaneously serves as a detective/case-breaking story as well as a classic revenge story of our female lead, Li Peiyi, niece to the emperor, whose entire family is wrongfully killed. The cases are the strong point of the drama, carrying emotional weight that builds to a point at the very end when Li Peiyi confronts the emperor defiantly. The revenge plot, however, is not well-constructed. The antagonists are not developed, and the political struggles are not even touched upon in this show, making it difficult for the audience to connect with the story beyond the superficial.

Ultimately, Bai Lu and Wang Xingyue are not given enough in the script either to sculpt their characters or to nurture any kind of romantic chemistry (at least it did not work for me). In fact, the most passionate performances from Bai Lu in this show (again, for me at least) were her scenes with the the Right Chancellor and the emperor. If the end credits' tease is to be believed, further seasons could be coming. In my opinion, enough time has been spent in a palace filled literally with skeletons in the proverbial closet.

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Had a blast

I enjoyed this show very much. The story in itself was pretty good. I wouldn't call it the best plot of all time, but it never made me lose my suspension of belief. What I really loved was the comedy and the characters and their growing relationships with each other. There were so many times I burst out laughing because I could not hold it in. (SPOILER) I was glad that there wasn't the usual trope of the main couple breaking up for the benefit of the one they love before they get back together couple episodes later. I loved watching the growth the characters had for each other as friends and as romantic partners. If you want to watch a light heartwarming story about friendship, camaraderie and love this show may scratch that itch.

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When the Farewell Feels Bigger Than the Love

Minamahal tries to end on an emotional airport goodbye, framing it as a grand romantic sacrifice. The problem isn’t the decision itself — her choice to leave is perfectly coherent with her practical personality.

The issue is structural. The relationship never goes through a meaningful process. There’s no real tension, no gradual build, no emotional depth that justifies the dramatic tone of the finale.

If love is meant to be tragic at the end, it first needs to feel solid in the beginning. Here, the farewell feels larger than the bond itself.

When something deep breaks, it hurts. But in this case, nothing truly deep was ever built.

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Poignant and engrossing

LOVE IN THE CLOUDS is the third fantasy in a row, starring Hou Ming Hao, that I’ve watched.

In each of the other two dramas, Hou Ming Hao played a demon of sorts, but neither of those characters was as dark, nor as multidimensional, as Ji Bozai. Both those dramas, while entertaining, had moments of gauzy meaninglessness.

The plot of this drama was solid and believable in a way the other two weren’t. Hou Ming Hao seemed more relaxed, more compelling, and altogether more likable as a human being in LOVE IN THE CLOUDS. The plot never deteriorated into terminal silliness, and the secondary characters were appealing and impressive.

I had a particular soft spot for Situ Ling, the FL’s rejected lover/villain–who pulled at my heartstrings, even as he descended into evil. (How did I know he was evil? His irises turned red, of course.)

The writers and director seemed to have a clear vision of where they wanted this story to go–and they took it there.

As usual, this wasn’t a perfect drama. Yes, it dragged a bit in places. And I found the FL’s lies and deceptions tiresome and not too convincing. The OST consisted of one particular melody, played over and over and OVER again. While it was a lovely piece of music, the repetition was annoying and tedious. Still, overall, a strong production.

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Watched it for Ryeoun, but end up liking the Main girl and Lawyer better

Don’t get me wrong, I love Ryeoun’s character and his character definitely got a very cool concept. But I just think it wasn’t executed as well since it’s such a complex character for such a short drama. Like he seems like a good person but why did he kill 17 people? His character kinda just sways around, very mysterious and I really don’t know what his personality truly is like. (Maybe I didn’t watch it well so pls tell me if you know)
For the main girl and the lawyer (I don’t remember names bro) They have a clear personality and doesn’t go out of character. I find their dynamic very interesting. They contrast each other greatly, the main girl is logical while the lawyer is emotional. But in reality they are like two sides of the same coin, both very determined and would do anything to achieve their goals.
The last two episodes felt a bit rushed, I wish this drama is longer so we can get a deeper look at Ryeoun’s character. I still enjoyed watching it though, the first 6 episodes are great

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Major Problem First Episode

I dropped this after one episode because of an unforgivable plot twist in the first episode.

The basic story and characters were OK if not spectacular but what killed it for me was how the writer handled the story resolution.

This of course is a medical drama. This episode's sick patient, the puzzle, and the challenge for the main character doctor to solve is a woman with debilitating pain that the medical system is unable to diagnose. Reminds me of a weak version of a typical House MD plot. This is what I found unforgivable. The doctor on cue towards the end figures out her problem i.e. solves the medical puzzle. But totally fails to explain how he arrived at that conclusion or if he was able to cure her of the disease or ease her symptoms. The woman expresses gratitude that she now knows what her malady is but the story doesn't advance to fixing her problem or letting the viewer in on how the puzzle was solved.

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Be prepared to get frustrated with the script

Thus must be one of the most boring and slow series that I have come across. The script is horrible, The pace is so slow and the lead actor is really "stiff" ,not natural and the lead actress is playing such a meek and forever saying I'm sorry role. I am flabbergasted as to how the screen play is adapted to try to stretched the episodes. I find it unrealistic that 2 persons cannot take it upon themselves to clear the air and explain what caused the breakup etc . Instead it drags on like a ship without a rudder and just floats with unexplained reasons to each other. The chemistry between the lead actor and actress is not great... I have seen better chemistry in other love romance series.
The lead actress character seems so weak and for someone who had returned from the US to China after so many years to restart her life, I would have expected her to be someone with confidence, vocal and ability to defend herself or speak up for herself etc...but the character instead does the reverse... unbelievable

I am tempted to drop this series and move one to other ones who may be more interesting

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"He who shouts the loudest isn't always the bravest"

The Human Condition II: Road to Eternity picked up not long after the end of the first installment with humanist thinker Kaji in basic training further away from his beloved Michiko. The frigid Manchukuo winter was the least dangerous enemy Kaji faced during the waning years of WWII.

Now in basic training, Kaji tries to keep to himself, follow the rules, and lead an exemplary military career. He is on a “Red” blacklist and constantly surveilled. Shinjo is another free thinker who is always assigned guard duty as punishment and refused promotion. Enlisted with more time in, use any opportunity to beat the new recruits, with the humiliation and pain driving two soldiers to take drastic action. When Kaji’s squad is moved to the front, he runs into an old friend who tries to help him by putting him in charge of a rifle squad and new recruits. Kaji is able to run his barracks the way he envisions which means he chooses to suffer the blows the veterans would normally dish out to the new recruits. When the Russians invade, the soldiers find out how absurdly unprepared they are for the assault.

After attempting to help Chinese workers and POWs in the first film, Kaji concentrated his views of equality and humanity on his fellow recruits and later on the new recruits under him. Unlike other soldiers who believed Japan could not be beaten even after devastating losses in the Pacific and the Allies victory in Europe, Kaji saw the writing on the wall. Despite hating the army he was a disciplined soldier and an excellent marksman, but his ultimate goal was to survive and make it home to Michiko and for his men to see their mothers and loved ones.

Being a humanist in a savage military atmosphere tested Kaji regularly. I had read how drill instructors and higher ranking enlisted brutalized new recruits as the war went on, especially college kids. Fourteen years after the war, this film showed the civilian population a taste of the cruelty their young men experienced at the hands of their own people. In order to raise morale, Kaji attempted to inject a modicum of kindness and respect into the men he trained. By giving his recruits real reasons to live, he hoped to motivate them to train hard and survive. As the wartime situation deteriorated, rifles and ammunition fell into short supply. Adequate fire power was absent in the face of the Soviet Union’s tanks and cannons. The Japanese soldiers were all but using popguns and Roman candles against their enemy. Commanders needlessly sacrificed their men. “To die here, is to die a dog’s death.”

As this film was more a psychological study of Kaji and the violent, dehumanizing military culture, the battles were rarely shown. The final battle did involve tanks and their cannons, but even then the focus was largely on Kaji and the soldiers’ reactions in their foxholes. After the tanks left Kaji and two other survivors struggling in a charred landscape, Kaji was once again forced over an ethical invisible line within himself.

Kaji’s determination to treat all men as men and with respect was harshly challenged and he paid the price repeatedly. As in the first film, he made mistakes and used violence when he felt the situation called for it. Wins for Kaji were not measured by the tide of the war or on the battlefield, but in the small moments when his actions protected his men from the army and helped them live a more fully human life in the face of fear and death.

25 February 2026
Trigger warning: During the battle scene a person was blown up with body parts flying. Many brutal beatings. Suicide.

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