Reviews

Started well, took some weird turns then became very mediocre

My Rating: 7.5/10

Review

I went into I Wanna Hear Your Song excited for the unique orchestra setting and the underdog story of a timpanist fighting for her place in a professional ensemble. The early episodes hooked me hard with that premise — the passion, the training bits, the classical music woven throughout, and the intriguing mystery layered on top. Kim Se-jeong brings a lot of heart to the role, and the OST and orchestral performances are definite highlights.

However, the show quickly shifts priorities. What starts as a compelling musical journey with thriller elements becomes a mystery-heavy drama where the orchestra setting fades into more of a backdrop. The romance and investigation take center stage, but they come with some frustrating character choices and pacing issues that many viewers seem to notice. I’ve watched over 450 dramas, so I can roll with tropes — but it doesn’t quite deliver on the emotional payoff I was hoping for from the musical arc. Solid performances and an interesting concept, but execution is uneven.

I would not recommend this one with so many better options. I got bored with it. There were a lot of things that were just annoying and frustrating in terms of things characters did. So, I would not watch it again.

Spoilers

The biggest letdown for me was how the underdog musician story got sidelined. We open with her determination to become a permanent part of the orchestra, some fun and quirky training moments, and real stakes around her belonging there. Then it almost immediately pivots hard into the murder mystery, and we barely see her musical growth or integration afterward. She ends up mostly on the sidelines, which means the later orchestra performances lack the satisfying emotional punch they could have had. I wanted her journey to stay central; instead, it feels like the writers used the orchestra world mainly as atmosphere. 

On the mystery side, it’s a decent whodunnit, but it has some logic gaps that became annoying. The stabbing incident felt obviously chaotic/self-defense/accidental from early on, so the prolonged guilt and suspicion around it dragged. The female lead’s excessive guilt complex (even over the death of a clearly nefarious character she only indirectly influenced) gets repetitive and frustrating. She also has important flashbacks revealing key details (including what looked like a kidnapping situation), but she only shares tiny fragments with others and doesn’t seem to piece things together proactively on her own. It makes her feel less smart and capable than the story needs her to be in a thriller.

Both leads also repeatedly throw personal safety out the window. Confronting suspects head-on, handing over weapons while accusing people of murder, and continuing risky behavior after already getting hurt — it’s classic “plot needs tension” decision-making that took me out of the story multiple times. We find out how the stabbing happened and that the conductor handed her the knife after attempting to rescue them. But, seriously, who runs down a slippery road in the rain with a knife pointed in front of you? Didn't we learn as children not to run with knives. I mean, I get it, she has some unknown person after her but pull the knife out when you can actually use it. Better yet give it to the guy who seems to be doing a lot better job of staying calm in chaos.

The male lead’s investigation style especially felt like throwing accusations at the wall hoping something sticks, which made the sleuthing less compelling. He was quite the thug. He just got of jail on suspicion of murder and is already holding conductor guy over a stairwell to get information.

Are they all stupid? They know CCTV is basically everywhere but they have confrontations even beat people up on camera and then try to lie to the police that they don't even know them. Like come on. I don't live in a country with cameras everywhere but I know better than to lie about things like that. They even offer to cover things up and lie for others to get what they want. So you are covering a crime and directly lying. That ought to end well for you.

The romance was another tricky element. It’s hard to fully buy his growing feelings while he still (at least partially) believed she viciously stabbed his brother. Even with the explanations given, the trust flip and emotional connection didn’t land as strongly as it needed to for me. She fell for him a bit too quickly after her ex cheated on her. It felt like she moved on from that lightening speed. And she liked this guy that was mostly stand offish and aloof with her. Did not seem to bother her a whole lot he, after knowing her a bit more, still thought she might just stab someone.

Overall, I get what the show was going for — trauma, guilt, hidden truths, and romance amid chaos — and it has some strong individual scenes thanks to the cast and music. But the imbalance between the promised musical underdog arc and the mystery, combined with character frustrations, kept it from being a standout. Many other viewers have noted the same issues with the sidelined orchestra elements, the reckless confrontations, the guilt trope, and the uneven mystery pacing.

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All the benefits with none of the downsides!

This was a colorful, snappy, office rom-com with enough steam to fog up your chic, librarian glasses!

I knew the leads had chemistry, but even I could not have predicted just how palpable the tension would be, nor how sultry the FLs could get. The looks they gave each other were downright devious and screamed: "Come hither, lover."

Lal and Wine were also intriguing on their own, both being capable, powerhouse career women, bearing the weight of their respective teams on their shoulders while struggling to value themselves.

While Wine was both intimidating and demanding, at the end of the day, she was just trying to do her job as best she could, and even got a little self-conscious about her reputation in the office. She wanted to express herself more and open up, but was afraid of changing/making herself a target again.

And Lal, while confident and quick-thinking, too easily put her health and happiness last on her list of priorities.

It was great to see them both grow and learn from/lean on each other.

And beyond that, the office politics and projects weren't just there for show. They contributed to and even pushed the plot forward.

I would also be remiss not to mention how they dared to go further, utilizing their office setting to highlight the real, underdiscussed struggles of women in the working world. How women have to perfectly conform to their boxes, dress just nice enough but not too nice, wear enough makeup to not look "tired" but not too much, and act polite enough but not too friendly, for the chance of maybe making it and maybe, just maybe, avoiding unwanted attention from their male colleagues. It's a delicate balancing act that shouldn't have to be attempted. And, related to this topic, it was so refreshing to see so many women supporting other women and making choices that were best for themselves rather than "going along to get along."

Really, a very relevant and thoughtful drama.

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Not as good as I expected from previous reviews

The plot/story was the weakest part of Love in the Clouds.

The secondary characters in this show were not interesting to me. I was not invested in the secondary plot lines at all.

I realize it is difficult to create an interesting villain, but the final villain was just simply a stalker, which isn’t very interesting. Also why didn’t they kill him when they had the chance in the last few episodes? Why wait until the tournament when they had a chance before?

The fact that the female leads adopted parents treated her so poorly was odd to me.

The back and forth “sacrifice myself for you” was the only main plot point between the two main leads. This was drawn out for too long.

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Li Shan Academy to the rescue in the 2nd half.....but still a Disappointment

“The First Jasmine” started out with a bang, and I really like the first half of the drama. I was captivated and the plot was moving at a pretty good pace. The first half focuses on setting the stage, introducing all the characters, development of romance and the revenge plot. The second half becomes more political and that’s where the drama falters. If it’s not for the Li Shan Academy arc in the second half, I might have dropped the drama, despite liking both Bai Lu and Cheng Lei as actors.


What I Like:
1. Smart leads - it’s always fun to watch smart main leads trying to outsmart each other, and guess the meaning behind each move. The first half of the drama was fun because Ye Li (FL) and Mo Xiu Yao (ML) are both introduced. Before they got together, it was interesting to see their interaction.

2. Revenge - Although Ye Li seems way too smart, it is without a doubt fun to see her try to take down all those who wronged her and her family. One by one, she seeks revenge, almost happening stealthily behind the scenes, while ML is trying to do the same.

3. Li Shan Academy arc - Without this arc in about ep 30, the second half of the drama would be a total bust. Everything about those few episodes was amazing - the story, the emotions, the acting and the romance. I cried during those few scenes, for ML, for FL and for everyone involved in Li Shan Academy.

4. Action scenes - this is a total surprise. I was not expecting fight scenes in a political revenge drama, but the few scenes they have are quite well-done. Ryan Cheng has a few fights that I was especially excited about.


What I have mixed feelings and don’t like:
1. Main romance - I know I am supposed to be in love with them. Their story is interesting, and their experiences together are supposed to make me fall in love with them individually and as a couple. Unfortunately, I was having a hard time connecting with them. It’s disappointing, because I am a romance lover. Aside from the angst and revelation/confession before the Lin Shan academy arc, I was lukewarm about the romance. I found Bai Lu and Ryan have decent chemistry, but not amazing enough to wow me.

2. Secondary romance - Can I even call it a secondary romance? The Prince Li and Ye Ying relationship is so blah. I would rather see Prince Li more as an obsessive ex-fiance and Ye Ying supposedly in love with this man, and wanting to be the wife to support him.

3. Acting - The acting is not bad, but it’s not amazing either. Bai Lu and Ryan performed to my expectations, and I have seen them done better in other dramas. Usually in dramas as such, I would be praising the veterans. But here, the veterans are also just OK, and no one really wows me. Is it the fault of the writing?

4. Court Politics - Unfortunately, this is the weakest theme and plot of the drama which took up most of the second half of the drama. The politics, though not complicated to understand, are not written in a way that excites me. There aren't any unique plot twists. The Prince Li revenge plot isn’t written well, and him as a character is rather boring. He was more interested as an obsessed ex-fiance than a political mastermind.

5. Characters - I think the biggest reason I am somewhat lukewarm about this drama is that I couldn’t quite connect with each character, especially the supporting characters. A drama can’t just rely on the male and female leads. You need compelling supporting characters (like beautiful green leaves to blossoming flowers). None of the supporting characters and backstories are interesting. I don’t feel happy or sad for them, because I don’t feel like their stories are written well. This is especially true with the 3 villains. Compared to other political dramas, villains fighting for power/throne have to be interesting, smart, and cunning enough for me to be invested in the whole political plot. But unfortunately, they are not shown this way.


I understand many viewers love “The First Jasmine” and it has a current high MDL rating of 8.4 right now. I think maybe not connecting to the characters is a “me” problem. However, the boring writing in the second half is a more objective criticism. It’s not a horrible drama, but a disappointing one when I quite enjoy the first half and the second half bores me. There are flashes of brilliance, but not enough to get a high rating. Because I enjoy the first half and the Li Shan academy arc, I am giving “The First Jasmine” a generous solid 8.0.


Drama Completed: 7/5/2026 Review #702

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True love's kiss is not enough to break the curse. Only loving yourself is.

This show is a delicate and messy exploration of how childhood trauma can affect people and impact their self-esteem and mental health even decades later, and it how hard it is to move on and relearn trust in both yourself and others.

The main character, Lee Dohoe, lives a suffocating life with an abusive father who manages a taekwondo gym in a small town, and his only ticket to freedom is studying hard to get into a top university. One day, a new boy named Shin Juyeong comes to the gym to train and the two boys quickly become each other's safe heaven. Unfortunately, life is not kind to either of them and they end up separating in a painful way. 12 years later, they end up meeting again and being trying to make sense of where they stand in each other's lives.

Dohoe is a purposefully messy main character. He went through so much trauma that his knee jerk reaction is to always ignore his problems and try to move on with his life by not thinking about them, and he does that by cutting all ties to his old life when he moves to Seoul. But complex trauma has a way of sneaking up on you when you least expect it and, if left unaddressed for years, it will slowly spread through all areas of your life, leaving no choice but to either face it or give up and ruin yourself in the process. Juyeong is the unstoppable force that meets this immovable object. He acts an anchor to Dohoe, but that in itself is a double-edged sword: while his presence grounds Dohoe to a reality where he can see himself becoming happy, the circumstances in which they met make Dohoe scared of reliving and getting stuck in his painful past again.

Both characters go through a lot of inner conflict to understand who they are and what they're even allowed to want for themselves, and that heavily affects the way they interact with each other. The actors did really well in their roles, they had the necessary range to act in both the lighter and the more emotional scenes, and on top of that they had amazing chemistry with each other. The dialogue was also well utilized and provided several emotionally impactful scenes.

But the stars of the show were definitely the soundtrack and the production quality. The scenes were always beautifully shot and aesthetically pleasing, while also adapting to the level of impact the show wanted to evoke in the viewer. And the original soundtrack (sung by Gogang, Yu Ra, and Jo Hwanji) provided the perfect accompaniment to the wide range of emotions the characters went through over the course of their 12-year journey.

All that being said, one thing I didn't love about this show was the pacing. It felt very slow at points only to rush through very important plot and character arcs, which made the overall story lose some of its impact, as the viewer wasn't allowed enough time to sit with and unpack all the sudden reveals being discussed. The choppy editing worsened this, as several important scenes were stitched together in a dizzying supercut that required way more screen time and breathing room than they were given, causing some frustration while watching as you need to piece together what happened in the past and how it continues to affect the present.

Overall, this was one of the best Korean BLs I've watched, both for its technical quality (script, production, photography, acting) and in its ability to stick the landing on the emotional impact. The storyline was overall solid and provided enough nuanced exploration of the themes it wanted to address to rise above the rest. I would definitely recommend it if you're looking for a more realistic portrayal of real life issues in your BL.

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I KNEW IT

Bro, while I was watching the show, I kept getting flashbacks to another BL about Litchi and Summer. Lo and behold, when I checked the show's IMDb, it had the same director! They have such a specific style that I recognized it instantly. You know you have a clear artistic vision when it can be recognized across multiple pieces.

Gorgeous cinematography, love the actors, AND no dubbing! No hate to the teams that do dubbing, but hearing the raw coughing, sniffing, and breathing is so refreshing.

The official reaction videos with the actors are an absolute MUST-WATCH too. They offer so much insight into the show, the characters' choices, and the symbolism that can easily go over an international audience's head. Also, I have to thank the person doing the subtitles because they're genuinely hilarious.

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Do Not be Afraid to take the Plunge

Jung Yi-hyun experienced the worst part of his life when he busted his knee during a baseball match that prevented him to ever go pro. As the police were scurrying around trying to get him off the edge of the school building rooftop, fellow student Yoon Sae-bom appeared and pushed him off the roof onto the drop balloon that the police has set-up on the ground to catch him. That was when he found life again. Fast forward to current timeline, both are now police officers, Jung as a police detective while Yoon in the anti-terrorist unit. Yoon is obsessed with finding happiness by trying to own things by herself, never believing in marriage and stuff when a virus outbreak happened where she found the perfect way to own her first apartment - secure the public official government housing quota by collecting enough merit for helping to apprehend her infected trainee, and proposing to Jung into a fake marriage. As they are about to enjoy the life in their first property, the virus outbreak spread to the apartment complex, leading to a complete lockdown of the complex by the Korean CDC agency led by Lt Col Han Tae-sok. Thus began their journey of navigating through the treacherous wave of human nature at its lowest form.

I love the FL who is depicted to be extremely bold and fearless, definitely borderline unhinged had not for the clear conscience that she possesses. I like it that both ML and FL are such badasses that theyre always trying to keep each other safe by instinct, constantly stepping in front of each other in the face of danger. Reminds me a lot of Pursuit of Jade’s badass couple Fan Changyu and Xie Zheng. And i totally love the chemistry they have on screen even without those lame ass slow-mo staring contests or the typical sexual tension situations as their relationship grows from friends to couple with benefits to a real couple finding love and solace in each other. Basically I am just in awe at how brilliant their relationship growth is without trying too hard, they definitely didnt need anything sexually suggestive that leads to romance, absolute kudos to the screenwriter for this brilliant write-up.

The action sequences are very satisfying even though there isnt really any villain with matching physical prowess that the couple possess, well except for those deranged infected people, but i dont really categorize them as villains. The villains here are those who are selfish and self-absorbed entitled residents who turned into unrecognizable beings once their self interests are at risk, and these people are actually much more dangerous than the infected.

Watching this show also reminded me a lot of Sweet Home, although Happiness has a much lower level violence and tensions. I am just amazed at how good the story writing is, especially when the the siblings who had been fighting over inheritance whom I thought would be the first to push each other into the infecteds turned out to be the one who stuck with each other to the very end. This is how real siblings should be though many in the world wouldnt act like what theyre supposed to.

The way the writer had woven in the human values are incredibly creative and smart. This is also one of the few zombie-like apocalypse show that didnt make me cringe. I can totally understand why they had high ratings here. They truly deserved it.

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I was expecting much more

Things I adored

1 The first poster I saw. I thought, that's my kind of rom com. I thought to be honest that they would live in different apartments, and I was pleasantly surprised to find out they were living together. I think it would be great if they lived as neighbors, but here we had more chances for bickering and romantic moments. So the premise was great for me and I was excited to watch it.

Things I loved

1 The ML. First of all, I find him handsome and that always plays a positive role to me when the series is a rom com. I have seen him before in Filter and I liked him, but the FL wasn't good enough for me, so it influenced his performance as well. Here, I found him much more handsome. I tried to watch the Love Me, Love My Voice, and he was gorgeous, but unfortunately the series didn't work for me because of the FL. So this is the first series where I liked both leads and him in particular.
He nailed the arrogant but kind lead, and honestly if not for him this would be a dull drama. I loved the banter and I loved his character. He was never truly mean or truly spoiled. He made the effort to change and he changed. Yes he did sometimes small things that could be interpreted as such, but he was the perfect tenant at the end of the day. He never took advantage of the FL, he paid for everything she did and it was part of his growth arc. He was always there for her. He brought a lot to his character with his acting and I loved him.
I loved how smart and hardworking and honest he was in every aspect of his life. Yes, he kept something important from the FL, but let's be serious, it was nothing that had any negative impact on her. I want also to add that he can kiss.

2 The father of the ML. He was a decent person and I was happy to see the the ML and him have a good relationship. I didn't find the actor particularly good, though.

3 The father of the FL. What a kind, understanding father. I wish he had more scenes.

Things I liked

1 The FL. So, this is difficult for me to write because I thought she would be great in this role, and she wasn't. What went wrong? Quite a few things. Let's start with the trivial. I didn't like at all her hair. It was always unkept and not in good way. The color didn't work, it made her look older than she is, and that bothered me during the whole series. This is the second drama I watched with her, and in the How dare you? she was gorgeous. So I expected her to be beautiful here as well. But the hair didn't do her any favors. I think it should be much lighter. Even worse, she was dressed as a 40 year old suburban housewife. I can't describe how much I hated her outfits. I probably liked two in the whole series, and just liked them. I didn't love any of her outfits and clothes are important to me in a rom com. The ML had some debatable outfits as well. But mostly he was dressed quite well. I hated that her friend and the ML talked about it and yet she never changed to a better way to dress.

These were the trivial reasons I didn't love her, but there were many others. Her character in the first episodes put me off. I though I had been transported back in the fifties. Who the heck thinks the way she thought? She got on my nerves a lot during these episodes and I was truly happy she broke up. Not because she deserved someone better, but to see her eat her words. Never a good sign to start with disliking one of the leads.
Her character was equally bad in the last episodes. I particularly hated the discussion with the father of the ML where she corrected him about living together with he ML like she was a 16 year schoolgirl, when she was in a relationship before and we saw her with the ML at the hotel. Stupid, illogical dialogue that made me dislike her.

Same illogic decision to sell the apartment and then act high and mighty when he complained. I'm not sure what happened to the screenwriters, but they surely made a mess of the last episodes. Her work attitude bothered me as well. A doormat, and to be honest she changed a bit too late for me. Then, there was her attitude in general. Sometimes she was bitchy, especially in the last episodes and that ruined a bit the series for me. I didn't get why she was like that. He never did anything to deserve that kind of coldness. The banter they had at first gave place to cold and detached comments I didn't appreciate. It's like the screenwriter lost the plot. It felt like she didn't care about him, and he was the only one to make any effort.

I have a lot more to say about her character. She had some great moments where she teased him , or when she laughed with his antics, but there weren't enough of these moments to make up for the lack of swooning moments. There were not enough kisses, not enough heartfelt moments, not enough chemistry in the end.

So, although I can't say I disliked her, I didn't love her. I though she was bitchy without reason, cold without reason, and that she looked so much older than him bothered me a lot. It felt like she didn't put much effort to be honest. Even in the last episode, when she talked with his father she came off as arrogant and bitchy than funny and witty. I regret another actress didn't have the role. I'd love a remake with a new actress. I have quite a few I think would be better playing the part.

2 The friends. Both were good friends, but I didn't care really for any of these. Yao Jing Jing was a bit much sometimes and although I find the actress good and gorgeous, she didn't have a lot to go here. Dang Yu wasn't interesting enough to me and I didn't care much about her love story.

Things I disliked

1 The secondary couples. I didn't care about any of their relationships.

2 The 2MLeads. Both were uninteresting to me and I fast forwarded their appearances after episode 20.

3 The mother of the 2ML. Yes, she was intrusive and have no patience for that kind of sticky mothers.

4 The ex. AI apart, he was an awful actor and his character was nonsensical. We never saw him have any growth and maybe it was the voice they used but it was so unnatural to listen to him that it was creepy.

5 The ex of the ML. I'm not sure why she was there in the last episodes. She was an idiot and we didn't need her to be part of the story anymore. Stupid if you ask me.

5 The FL superior. Yes, she was an ambitious woman who lost her way but what I didn't like was the way the FL looked up at her and forgave her. Why the heck? She was a greedy, immoral woman who tried to undermine the ML. Another reason I disliked the FL.

Things I hated

1 It wasn't romantic enough. It didn't deliver what the poster and the premise promised. No swoony moments, not enough chemistry. Apart for a few moments, it was bland in the romance department. The proposal was another dark moment. The ring was gorgeous, the proposal itself awful. Why did I went through 36 episodes? For that? Not even a kiss. Give me a break.

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The newly reborn president Kang

If you don't have time to read the whole thing, skip to the end where the conclusions are :)

Reborn Rookie introduces us to Hwang Jun-hyeon, a soccer player for Choiseong FC, and Kang Yong-ho, president of the Choiseong Group, cross paths when the president's son, Kang Jae-sung, brutally runs over Jun-hyeon with the president's car while trying to hide the embezzlement that he and his twin sister, Kang Jae-gyeong, had committed. Angered by the abrupt end of his football career and the 400 million won fine he must pay, Jun-hyeon confronts Chairman Kang, but they both end up accidentally hitting their heads when falling down the stairs. Waking up in the hospital, Chairman Kang is faced with a shocking revelation: his soul now inhabits Jun-hyeon's body, while Jun-hyeon's soul remains in his original body, fast asleep in a coma. To assimilate this unexpected situation, President Kang decides to cause a stir in the company and punish the bad actions of his children by posing as the brilliant new employee Hwang Jun-hyeon, with the help of Kang Bang-geul, his youngest daughter, whom he kept hidden for years.

The story presents us with a not very common plot but with some dramas of this type such as Reborn Rich but with its own style, a corporate drama with twists and situations that keep you hooked and a setting that makes you feel as if you were in an office, the drama for me evolved with the chapters, I must say that the first one did not convince me but then I was totally hooked, I like how it mixes corporate twists with comedy and high-tension situations in general. I give the story an 8.5/10


This drama does not present us with many characters, so I will go directly to the analysis of the protagonists

Hwang Jun-hyeon (Lee Jun-young): A footballer whose dream was to play in the Premier League before his grandmother, who suffers from dementia, forgot that promise. Playing for Choi Seong FC was his first step, when an accident ended his sports career; The club terminates his contract. The investigation of the accident goes through great difficulties, such as the disappearance of evidence, but it is learned that the car that hit him was the favorite vehicle of Kang Yong-ho, president of the Choi Seong group.

Kang Yong-ho (Lee Jun-young/Son Hyun-joo): President of the Choi Seong group. He inherited the company at just 32 years old, and suddenly found himself as a rookie surrounded by enemies like his stepmother and stepbrothers who were harassing his position. That fight hardened him, and turned him into a man who despises those who are not worth what they cost. Now he has everyone in suspense while he decides which of his children will be the successor: the first-born Jae-kyung or the second Jae-seong. Both incompetent, and also interested in lining their pockets instead of looking out for the interest of the company. But they are his children, and although furious with them, he cannot bequeath the group to someone else. On the day of the succession announcement, he suffers an accident as a result of which he ends up exchanging his body with that of a young friend. This could be a heaven-sent opportunity, a gift from God to properly punish the children you spoiled and to protect your company.

I must say that Lee Jun-young's performance was quite good, since he has that leadership demeanor, and the truth is he knew how to handle this character, with his nuances and everything that was seen in the two characters

Kang Bang-geul (Lee Joo-myoung): Yong-ho's third daughter, stepsister of the twins. Sent to the United States fifteen years ago, she lived as the daughter of a chaebol family shrouded in secrecy. Now she has returned and works as an intern at the Choi Seong group. When she was twelve years old she realized that nothing in her house belonged to her and she was forced to study away from it. There she began to prepare her revenge and lead a double life: apparently, a mediocre fashion student who spends her time having fun; in reality, training with courses in politics, economics and business administration. Thus he acquired all kinds of skills and entered the family business to prove that he was a swan and not the ugly duckling.

Another success for Lee Joo-myuong, her roles amuse me so much, in Twenty-Five Twenty-One the beautiful Ji Seung-wan and now Kasey Kang, I must say that her performance is one of my favorites, I hope to see her in other roles soon.

Kang Jae-kyung (Jeong Hye-jin) Daughter of Yong-ho and twin sister of Jae-seong, president of Choi Seong Chemical. With a strong personality, proud and possessive, she imposes birthright on her brother for only fifty seconds. She has not gotten over the fact that her father betrayed her mother and that just a year after her death he took another wife. Her resentment against him leads her to wish that he would disappear, and she sees an opportunity when he suffers a accident: she will finally be able to take control of the Choi Seong group, daughter of Yong-ho and twin sister of Jae-seong, president of Choi Seong.

Her character earned all my hatred. How can someone be so selfish and try to kill their father for money? She's a psychopath. The actress did a good job.

Kang Jae-seong (Jin-goo): Second son of President Kang, twin of Jae-kyung, and president of Choi Seong Chemical. Choi Seong, the younger of the twins, is an expert at making mistakes, brimming with greed but narrow-minded, and plagued by an inferiority complex. Overwhelmed by his father and overshadowed by his older sister, he becomes petty, determined to defeat her and seize control of the Choi Seong Group.

I must say that at first I hated him, but I liked how he joined the alliance.

I liked how the drama explored alliances at work and friendships within them, as well as the themes of family and the father-son relationship. Overall, I give the acting a 9.0/10.


As for the music, I really liked it, especially "No Breaks" and "I'm Running." Overall, I give it a 9.0.


Would I watch it again? Probably not. Although I liked it, it's not my type of drama, so I'd give it a 7/10.

NOTE: I'm disappointed with the ending. It couldn't have ended any other way. It's fine that there's another season, but honestly, it felt unnecessary, which is why I'm lowering my rating to 8.5. Also, the last two episodes didn't maintain the drama's pace. Even so, I enjoyed it, and I'll probably watch another season if there is one.


In short, Reborn Rookie is... A corporate drama with touches of fantasy, such as body swapping, tense moments, workplace friendships, and themes of family and business—perfect for fans of the genre. Overall, I give it a 8.5/10; they did a very good job.


THANKS FOR READING

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Catholic Guilt Meets Pure Love

As an atheist, I am always intrigued by Catholic Guilt and Original Sin. I can't understand the 'struggles' Catholics have with love, and the purity of the feelings that we evolved as a species to embrace.
Having said that, I found this series profound, getting to the nub of the problem. Poor Tanrak had such a hard time, because he'd been brainwashed to believe that, if he "sinned" he wouldn't go to Heaven to meet up with his parents again. Then along came Barth The Disrupter, who had him questioning his beliefs. Barth was a breath of fresh air in the boring, stultified atmosphere of the Catholic Boys home/school.
Along the way, 'Auntie Lek", (who is that actor?) who showed Tanrak that he could love himself, Barth, and still love his god. This was a turning point for Tanrak, but, right up 'til the final ten minutes of ep6, I did not think Tanrak and Barth were together - I assumed the priest that was being ordained that day was Tanrak. This mystery held the audience in suspense from the opening scenes of ep1 until the final closing moments.
Gemini and Fourth had me in tears and laughter -their performances were beautiful and timeless.
The script was well written, and wove a story of angst, pain, laughter, and love, into a
warm blanket.
Even knowing the ending, I would watch this again.

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Good start, better ending!!

Well, I came to this mini drama because of the presence of that actress, Zhang Nan, that I have watched in previous dramas like The Wanted Detective, Glory or Gone With the Rain. In all this series, her performance was superb, wonderful and near perfection, what a great performer she is. I like too the wuxia dramas, more like no other kind, more like xianxia or some magical issues that I’m not entirely on them. And when I realised this was mainly featuring female characters in fighting duties, i’ll think It could be a good attempt.

At first, the drama starts with an average tone, introducing the main characters, the Jinyiwei stuff and the struggles in the past and some uncover things. Sheng Bingfan (Zhang Nan) is a cold and stubborn girl who wants to uncover the death of her father in the hands of the famous assassin Leng Xin. Hua Mange is her partner, a wonderful and straighforward character, and the cute Cheng Xintian closes the trio of female agents. They are supported by the MLs of the show, the frivolous Chang Beiming (Jiang Chao), a noble with a double life and many secrets to hide, and Xu Duoyu (Ge Qiugu), an scholar with innovative ideas about war and fighting. The plot begins a little sloppy, maybe, not very exciting, while making Chang and Bingfan to enter a kind of love and hate relationship, but this is not a romance, so this story is not really developed. The presence of another villain, Feng Fuliu, as a masked warrior with no clear intentions, entangle the plot some more. Slowly, the pacing is improving, the plots are more interesting and everything starts to work better. About half the drama, I was completely hooked with the history, the mega cute female team and some of the fighting scenes. This is not the good point of the drama, of course. Some of the actors, starting with Zhang Nan, does not seem to have worked so much in the coreography. However, Zhang repay it with her good acting skills in the fights, and the other characters really do it very well. Hua Mange is charming in her fighting skills with her whip, and the ML did a good job, too, with cool weapons like his fan.

But the highlight of the show, for me, is the main villain, the character of Leng Xin (who is not a lead but a support role in the cast). Spoiler alert, this character is portayed by the actress named Wang Junbi, a little girl who doesn’t seem to fit for a supposed “terrific” role like that. However, in the show, Leng Xin is presented as the public enemy number 1, with incredible fighting and qigong skills, even superior to any other character in the story. This is not some common in this kind of dramas, male centered forever, and I’ve never seen a final boss fight between two women (Bingfan and Lengxin). For that reason alone It’s worth watching, my god. The final battle, with the assassin Leng Xin fighting alone all the other characters together and nearly winning, has been very exciting, and I almost changed my mind wanting her to win, hahaha. Some of the choreographies are really good, albeit brief, and everybody made an excelent performance with the wirework, yeah.

Besides, spoiler alert too, I liked a lot the performance of Leng Xin as a cute and undercover maid. Her relationship with Xintian, presented as truly love, is something not often seen in this kind of shows, here we have one sided sismance, hahaha, truly heartwarming. That actress, Wang Junbi made a really cool performance as an histrionic character, evil to the bones, without redemption, at the final episodes. It’s very very very coooool, I can only praise her.

On the whole, I can say that there are minor flaws in the show; if you’re not searching some deep story, or a heartwarming romance, or some like that, if you want entertainment, here it is. I want to praise all the performers in the show, everybody is doing a very good job here.

For all of that, I can only rate this mini drama very high; since I really enjoyed watching it. I’m not in the “rewatch” mode, hardly ever, but in this case I could do it, for sure. Thumbs up!

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