Reviews

A DRAMA TO BE WATCHED DURING WINTER, IF YOU MAY

Sang Yan. Sang Yan. Sang Yan. And I’m going to say it again: Sang Yan!!

I went into The First Frost expecting to like it, but I did not expect to feel THIS much. I absolutely loved the story, loved the writing, and honestly, I love the writer for giving us a story filled with so much yearning, emotional complexity, and characters that actually feel like people.

And of course, Bai Jingting and Zhang Ruonan were phenomenal. I already love Bai Jingting, but Sang Yan?? The man that you are!! The way he carried that character—the longing, the restraint, the tenderness, the things left unsaid—was just incredible. His acting made Sang Yan's yearning feel almost tangible.

And Ruonan was equally amazing. She was phenomenal in her role. You could feel Wen Yifan's pain through her acting, even in moments where she didn't say much. Her expressions and little changes in emotion did so much of the storytelling. Bai Jingting and Zhang Ruonan had such a strong emotional connection that their scenes could absolutely destroy me.

Miaoyi and Edward were great in their roles too, but honestly, so was everyone else. The supporting cast really added to the story rather than just existing around the leads. Each character felt like they had their own personality and purpose.

And I HAVE to talk about Yifan.

I actually really liked how her character was written. I know some people dislike her, but honestly, I think anyone who hates her simply because she isn't an effortlessly cute, cheerful, perfectly agreeable female lead is missing the point of her character. Female characters don't always have to be cute or easy to like. Yifan is complicated. She's flawed, emotionally guarded, sometimes frustrating, and carrying a lot of pain—and that's exactly what makes her interesting.

I appreciate that the writer allowed her to be a complex female character instead of forcing her into a stereotypical lovable heroine mold. Her characterization made sense to me, and Ruonan's performance made it even better.

But let's be serious.

SANG YAN.

The yearning.

THE YEARNING.

This man spent so much time carrying feelings that he couldn't simply put into words, and Bai Jingting somehow managed to communicate all of that through his acting. There were moments where I genuinely wanted to reach through the screen and comfor him.

Sang Yan, the man that you are.

And somehow this drama decided that making me emotionally devastated wasn't enough—it had to make me cry repeatedly while I was in the middle of my exams. I was supposed to be studying. Instead, I was sitting there emotionally destroyed over fictional people. (I still got 95%, so it was very worth it!!)

So yes, I loved the story. I loved the writing. I loved the characters. I loved the acting. I loved the emotional depth.

And most importantly:

SANG YAN.

10/10 for the yearning.

10/10 for Bai Jingting.

10/10 for Zhang Ruonan.

10/10 for making me cry during exams.

Sang Yan, you will never not be the norm.

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There is no season 1 and yes, that confused me as well

Shen Haonan never ceases to amaze at the duality and depth of his acting. He plays an undercover cop trying to take down a crime syndicate. The FL is the surviving daughter of one of the many crime syndicates family murders. What surprised me the most was how blood thirsty the mother was and how (seemingly) softer the father (uncle) was. If the FL knew their family was behind her familys murder — why was she still so kind to him before his death? It also begs the question of just how involved he was in her family's murders. Overall done very well. Although the ending is not a happily ever after one, it is the one that makes the most sense and is in-line with thr story. There are somethings that you don't come back from and the undercover work he had to do changed him too much to ever go back. Trading his life for hers was a life well-spent for him and the closure he needed.

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WHY?

The plot had me questioning things constantly. How does she get away with going out with her guards so often? And more importantly, why does the Crown Prince never seem suspicious about any of it? Apparently, everyone in this palace has decided not to ask questions.

The whole Shiyi situation made even less sense. The condition for saving him was that he had to consummate with a woman. So when he was found safe, why didn't the Crown Prince ask a single question about how exactly that happened? That's not exactly a minor detail you casually forget about.

I think the actors actually acted better after the body swap. The male lead's feminine mannerisms were genuinely on point. He really nailed the way she moved and behaved. The female lead was also good at the aloof expressions, although her laugh was... incredibly awkward. Every time she laughed, I felt like I was watching someone who had been given the instruction “Now laugh naturally” and had absolutely no idea what that meant.

As for the cast overall, the main leads were average, while most of the supporting cast were just... bad. There were a few enjoyable performances, but nobody really made me think, Wow, this actor is carrying the drama.

And then we have that ending.

Whatever the fuck that was.

I genuinely don't know what they were trying to accomplish there. After everything, the ending felt so bizarre and unsatisfying that I was left staring at the screen wondering whether I there were more episodes

Overall, How to Train Your Killer wasn't terrible, but it wasn't good either. It had some fun moments, but the plot holes, questionable character decisions, average performances, and absolutely unhinged ending made it a very “well, at least I finished it” kind of drama.

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Grim, Mysterious and Full of Questions

The First Jasmine is a rather grim drama with very little humour, but it makes up for that with mystery, unanswered questions and plenty of intrigue. From the beginning, the story keeps you wondering what is really going on.

Ye Li marries the disabled Prince Ding after her former fiancé, Prince Li, breaks off their engagement and chooses to marry her sister instead. But Prince Li's reaction at the wedding makes it painfully obvious that he is still in love with Ye Li. So why did he break off the engagement?

And that is only the beginning. The drama throws up one question after another:

Prince Ding's brother and his cavalry are executed for bringing an army into the capital without permission, yet he insists that he has an imperial decree. Was there really one? And if so, where is it?

Ye Li sees her maid when no one else can. Is she hallucinating, or is something more sinister going on?

And, of course, the biggest question: Will Prince Ding and Ye Li actually live happily ever after?

Characters I Admired:

Ye Li is undoubtedly my favourite. I always admire intelligent, upright characters, and she has both strength and intelligence in abundance. She is not the sort of heroine who simply waits for someone to rescue her. Despite all her strength, she has her vulnerability.

The Empress is another interesting character. She is actually very smart, but her methods are far too extreme, driven by over-ambitious ideals. She is the sort of character whose motives you can understand, even when you cannot agree with what she does.

There are also some genuinely heart-rendering moments. One villain gives up everything for his lofty obsessive ambition — his love, the person who loves him, a prestigious position and the possibility of a happy life - only to be killed because of it.

Then there is someone who could have been remembered and respected for their achievements, only to be brought down by hatred from the people because things were done too hastily and through extreme methods. It is a reminder that even good intentions can have disastrous consequences when ambition takes over.

My Biggest Problem with the Story:

There is one glaring flaw that kept bothering me. So much of the story revolves around the sealing of Li Shan Academy. But how exactly does sealing the academy prevent the Empress from seizing the throne? It is not as if the scholars are an army capable of fighting for her. Yes, they are influential in the scholarly world, but really? Their sealing feels more like a needless sacrifice than something that would actually stop a coup. Much ado about nothing, perhaps?

And Now for Some Nitpicking...

The drama flips between different sequences of events far too often. A scene barely has time to develop before we are suddenly transported to another event — and sometimes it keeps jumping between three different happenings. Flashing between timelines can be an effective way to create a sense of significant time passing or gradually reveal a mystery. Here, however, it happens so frequently that it becomes more annoying than clever.

Some scenes were also rather boring. There were moments when I could quite happily have walked away and done something else without feeling that I was missing much.

Despite all that, The First Jasmine remains an entertaining watch. The mysteries keep you going, the characters are interesting, and there are enough twists to make you want to find out what happens next.

I was debating between 8.5 and 9, but I decided to be generous.

⭐ My rating: 9/10

Grim, occasionally frustrating, but ultimately an entertaining mystery with plenty to keep you guessing. Worth your time.

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Warm. That would be the most suitable word to summarize this show in one word.

I think, to start, the first thing I noticed in this movie from the very beginning, which I don't usually find in other series, especially Boys Love series, is the use of colors in the making of this show. It really matched the original theme of the book "When Oranges Fall", which is from the early 2000s. The warm "orangey" color used on the show really interests me and created a warm feeling for me personally that would honestly make me want to watch more. I watched this show blindly from a YouTube recommendation without knowing a single thing about the story & character. It was purely random, and it is a great decision of mine, I would say.

I'm a big fan of high school BL to start, and I've been watching BL since 2021. But I haven't found anything quite like this before. I believe it was also an effort from both of the actors, Poomsuwan Suwansatit as Ko Song & Passawish Thamasungkeeti as Ko Neung. The storyline is really not niche. I firstly am curious why the producer named it "When Oranges Fall", since I didn't know the context of the movie (pure blindbox XD), but later I found out the concept is actually really cute, where a single orange tree created a later to be romantic relationship between the main characters. I also can't forget to mention about the relationship development between the characters. At first, they don't even like each other because Ko Song doesn't seem friendly to Ko Neung, but who knows they would end up in a romantic relationship?

Talking about the characters, I would really love to mention about the great acting of Ko Number 1, he could really build that fun, extroverted, and cute character that has really caught my attention. I'll take one example, his habit of putting the peeled-off orange skin on his head? No wonder why Ko Number 2 fell in love with him :P His emotional act has also really gotten to me, I nearly cried when he couldn't accept the fact that he might be separated from Ko Number 2 because he knew they'd eventually grow up and couldn't be high schoolers forever.

I also won't forget to mention the great character of Ko Song played by Poomsuwan Suwansatit. Recently, I've noticed that most of his shows have him being a smart and lovey-dovey boyfriend, and yeah, I agree LOL.. He really is built up to be that kind of character. The way he talks and cares for his boyfriend somehow made me jealous sometimes.. LMAO... My favorite scene of him is when he was avoiding Ko Number 1, he finally confessed his feelings when the rain poured that he actually loved Ko Number 1 and couldn't resist anymore. If you noticed, LOOK AT HIS FACE IN THE SCENE!! I almost died seeing his pleasing face!

The last thing I loved and need to mention is the friendship aspect of their "gang"! It was truly a wonderful and perfect friendship. The way they always hang out whenever and whenever together is just pleasing! Going to the beach, hanging out after school, sailing together, and many more! Also, the relationship of Augar and Achi really adds up to the story! Sometimes I even forgot to focus on the main characters because of the cuteness overload from Augar's relationship! And this is honestly the kind of friendship I need, and I want.. T-T

The only thing that I had wished to be on the series is more screen time for August and Tle.. It is honestly sad that we couldn't know and could only guess how they would end up. To be honest, their story is really interesting too.. That's why It disappoints me.. Tle didn't even get to show up on the last episode, where I really wished we would get to know how they finally ended up :(

I had a lot more to say about this movie, but It would be such a waste as you should've gone to watch this amazing series yourself! This show even moved me to watch LoveSick 2024 because I simply just couldn't move on from them! To be honest, I don't really write reviews myself, that's why you guys might notice that it's really messy... but Ko Number 1 & 2 really pushed me to write this review :D I would definitely rewatch this wonderful show in the future :)

#AlmondProgress4Ever 🍊

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Two separated by death are given another opportunity.

What I enjoyed most about Xing Xing Qi Yuan was the relationship between Xu Yuan and Zhou Qi Xing. This isn't simply a rebirth story about changing the past—it is about getting a second chance to save the person who once sacrificed everything for you.

In her previous life, Xu Yuan experienced the destruction of her family and the death of Zhou Qi Xing, the blind young man who ultimately died for her. When she is reborn, she remembers everything and is determined that this time his fate will be different.

Zhou Qi Xing, however, doesn't have those memories. From his point of view, Xu Yuan suddenly enters his life determined to get close to him—and she isn't exactly shy about it! 😂❤️

I really enjoyed watching Xu Yuan actively pursue him. Her flirting provides some lighter moments, but underneath it is something much deeper. She knows what Zhou Qi Xing did for her in their previous life. Every time she protects him or refuses to leave him behind, you understand why she is fighting so hard.

Zhou Qi Xing was my favorite part of the drama. His blindness never makes him a weak ML. He is intelligent, capable, and emotionally strong, while also carrying his own wounds. As Xu Yuan slowly enters his heart, we see his guarded personality begin to change.

What makes their romance especially meaningful is that they save each other.

Xu Yuan believes she returned to save Zhou Qi Xing, but while she is trying to change his fate, he also becomes someone who gives her strength to face the enemies threatening her family.

I also liked that the romance doesn't exist separately from the revenge storyline. The Si family's actions continue threatening everything Xu Yuan is trying to protect, meaning changing fate isn't as simple as knowing what happened before. She still has to fight for this new future.

Their relationship gradually changes from Xu Yuan trying to repay a debt from another lifetime into genuine love in this one.

That is what made the story work for me.

In his previous life, Zhou Qi Xing died protecting Xu Yuan.

In this life, Xu Yuan refuses to let him die for her again.

Sometimes a second life isn't about changing your own fate. Sometimes it's about saving the person you couldn't save the first time.

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A story that belongs to its time

I thought Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo was a good drama for 2016, but watching it in 2026, I can’t say I found it extraordinary and so tragic as I initially thought.
First of all, I was a little surprised by all the comments saying that all died. They didn’t. And honestly, considering the struggle for the throne, deaths among the princes are not that surprising, especially in a historical drama. I have watched Asian dramas that were much more violent and filled with far more hatred.
For me, the love story between Hae Soo and the 8th Prince, Wook, was much better developed and had much more chemistry. Their relationship felt natural, emotional and romantic. In comparison, I didn’t really feel that same chemistry between Hae Soo and the 4th Prince, Wang So. We know that he was constantly trying to protect her, and their relationship was important to the story, but somehow I didn’t feel enough romance between them. I kept waiting for that deeper emotional connection to really come through.
That said, I think the drama did a good job of trying to portray the reality of those times. The competition for the throne, the political conflicts and the deaths are part of the world the story is trying to show. It isn’t necessarily a story about endless hatred or violence, but rather about people caught in a brutal political reality.
I actually avoided watching this drama for a long time because of the reviews. I had the impression that it would be overwhelmingly sad and depressing. In the end, I found it to be more of a story about a certain reality, with many beautiful moments along the way — especially Hae Soo’s relationships with the princes and the memories they created together.
I also have to mention IU. I think she played Hae Soo perfectly. The character suited her incredibly well: beautiful, playful, kind, warm-hearted and compassionate. It’s easy to understand why so many men were drawn to her.
Overall, I think Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo was a drama that excelled in its time and clearly left a strong impression on viewers. But watching it now, in 2026, I would personally rate it as a good drama rather than an extraordinary one.

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The Captive Rose (2025), aka as Hidden Rose (2025) is a very good rebirth fantasy romance miniseries with ML：Liang Siwei as (Huo Zhan Xing) and
FL： Wang Jin (as Wen Qian Su) in the leading couple's roles. The cast did a good job bringing their characters to life and the leading couple had a great rapport with an intense connection and a passionate romantic chemistry. The drama can cause an array of feelings and a wide range of emotions concerning the male lead, but the story is about redemption after rebirth, a second chance to do things right and, during the process, being able to be loved and to cherish and protect your loved one. Overall, the drama i interesting and entertaining; enjoy it!

In the meantime, you can watch the drama on YouTube under the caption: " 4K【梁思偉💕王槿】未婚夫劈腿繼妹，她又被親爹趕出家門！暴雨夜暈倒在霍先生車前，醒來竟被他溫柔寵上天，原來他是重生來奪妻！《酥酥入懷》全集#短劇 #甜寵#cdrama [GOOGLE TRANSLATED:4K [Tony Leung 💕 Wang Jin] Her fiancé cheated with her stepsister, and she was kicked out by her own dad! Collapsing in the rain one night in front of Mr. Huo's car, she wakes up to find him showering her with gentle love—turns out he’s back from the past to win his wife! 'SuSu in My Arms' full series #shortdrama #sweetlove#cdrama] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8MvWaWv6zQ) or "His tenderness and favoritism are the most magnificent armor on my path of revenge." (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6g4UvcdXHm8)

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"friends" with different personalities (watch suggestions)

Overall: visuals were stunning. Parts of their dynamic and the ending was not clear. 10 episodes about 22 minutes each. Airing on iQIYI https://www.iq.com/play/summertime-episode-1-wcrrbix90o?lang=en_us ; GagaOOLala https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/8745/summertime-2026 (not available in Japan, Korea, Americas, Angola, Guinea-Bissau, Cape Verde Islands, Mozambique, Sao Tome and Principe, Macau, Timor-Leste, Spain, Portugal, United Kingdom and Oceania) and Wavve (S. Korea)

Content Warnings: bullying, homophobia, manhandling, past death, grief, violence off screen

Watch Suggestions (removes content warnings, focuses on steamy and sweet)
- episode 1 watch beginning-7:30, 16:40-end
- episode 2 watch begnnng-1:10
- skip episode 3
- watch episode 4
- episode 5 watch beginning-2:30
- episode 6 watch 20-end
- watch episode 7
- episode 8 watch beginnng-18:45
- episode 9 watch 8:45-15:30
- episode 10 watch 14-18

What I Liked
- best start of series
- different personalities
- visuals
- intimacy

Room for Improvement
- one character treated the other character like an object to possess instead of a person with his own thoughts/desires
- he yelled at the friends and snitched to the dad when he did the same thing
- the dad beat him so badly he had bandages and everyone was chill about it???
- love rival
- episode 9 drama was unnecessary
- how the ended episode 10, it seems just the last scene was a dream but it was not well explained

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Beautiful, Amusing, Intriguing, Heart-rendering

Love Beyond the Grave starts on a grim note, with the massacre of a town, but the mood quickly changes when General DuanXu arrives. Dilraba as He Si Mu absolutely had me roaring with laughter when she started flirting with him. She is so pretentious that it becomes hilarious. Her expressions — flirtatious, cunning, wicked and hypocritical — are spot-on. Good looks and excellent acting skills are always a killer combination for actors.

And this drama certainly has the looks. Dilraba and Miles Wei are absolutely eye-candy — both are stunningly good looking. Miles once again plays the jilted lover, as he did in Flourished Peony and its sequel. Call me shallow, but good-looking actors with excellent acting skills always score extra points with me.

There are also some lessons to be learnt. If you are infatuated with someone who does not return your love, learn to back off. Do not assume they are merely playing hard to get. Otherwise it becomes harassment.

I also could not help drawing parallels with the corporate world when the emperor fails to reward the person most worthy of praise, instead rewarding peripheral staff. It is the classic workplace problem: bosses reward the obedient rather than the capable, and then wonder why the capable ones leave. I could empathise with DuanXu's frustration but admire that he still had not abandoned his ideal of recovering the 17 prefectures despite having such an absolute asshole of an emperor.

As for forgetting the names of exes — well, I completely empathise with Si Mu on that one!

The story also has enough twists and mysteries to keep things interesting. We are left wondering whether DuanXu is really who he claims to be, or a murderer who has assumed the identity of a dead man. There are simply too many things about him that do not fit someone from a scholarly family.

Some of the supporting characters are memorable too. The Shaman was thoroughly infuriating, while Ding Jia Wen, as the Imperial Preceptor, really brightened the drama with his coy, playful, drama-queen antics. The two young actors playing young Chen Ying and Spirit Song Xing Yu were commendable for their age and showed real promise as future stars. Credit also goes to the casting team: the child and teenage versions of Chen Ying actually bear a convincing resemblance to each other.

There are some genuinely heart-rendering moments. An upright, capable and promising young minister commits suicide simply to save someone else. He could have denied the edict, so why did he have to die? And when a villain dies happily knowing that the woman he loves will be alright, it is heartbreaking. I agree that it was probably the right ending for him, but credit where it is due — his love was sincere.

On the other hand, I became increasingly impatient with DuanXu's constant self-punishment and reckless abuse of his own body. He repeatedly exchanges his senses with Si Mu even though he knows perfectly well that doing so will weaken him and eventually kill him. At some point, I just wanted to yell at him: stop doing this to yourself!

As for the soundtrack, it has many lovely melodious pieces - absolutely enchanting. I was debating between 9 and 9.5 - decided to change it to 9.5 because of the beautiful soundtrack.

Now for my nitpicking...

If DuanXu gives all his senses to Si Mu, does that mean she becomes completely incapacitated of her spiritual powers?

And why would the spirit still want revenge on the people who wronged her? After all, they should surely have been dead for decades, given that it takes a century for an obsessed spirit to cultivate a human body.

And those obsessive spirits floating around like jellyfish really did not work for me. Surely there was a better CGI alternative — perhaps a vague human silhouette would have been far more atmospheric.

Overall, I rate Love Beyond the Grave highly for its entertainment value. It has beautiful actors, good performances, humour, romance, mystery, twists and enough emotional drama to keep things moving. My nitpicks aside, it is an enjoyable watch.

Enjoy!

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I found my underrated drama of the year so far.

Incredible acting by almost all the cast. I've watched many of the ML's before so I already know what a good actor he is, but the FL really stole the show in basically every scene she was in. Also, both ML and FL had incredible chemistry together which is so important to me and what makes or breaks a drama - and I wouldn't say this was a romance drama at all, but this drama was so unexpectedly romantic. The yearning, love, and devotion exhibited by the both of them was 10/10, no notes.

Plot was engaging, and not boring even though I know next to nothing about salt trade. I thought everything made sense, the villains were convincing, and it tied up nicely at the end. All the side characters were interesting, and I was actually majorly invested in their character arcs to see where they would end up.

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This was cute, what else can I say?

It took me a little while to start watching... I'm afraid I'm not a huge fan of Domundi's series, but I watched it because of the hype.

Overall
This series is definitely for the fluffy-series lovers; the story is sweet, the characters are charming and the humor is fun. if you're looking for something more complex or mature maybe this is not for you.

Through the first episodes, the series is entertaining and fun to watch. The pacing is calm, there isn't any annoying or unnecessary drama.

I liked that most of the characters are total green flags, Duang, while chasing Quin, always respected his boundaries and never harassed him, like it often happens in some other bl series. Also Duang and Quin's friends were very supportive of them, they have an endering and healthy relationship.

The subplot of Qin's childhood trauma was very interesting to watch, it gave depth to the series, and it helped us to understand Qin's character better.

The intimate scenes were surprisingly well-performed, they were sensual, but not highly erotic or spicy, and the skinship through the series felt natural and cute.


Notes and things I didn't like:

At the beginning I thought they made Duang's character too unrealistic and stupid, but from middle to end of the story he seemed to return to sanity.

There some things that could be cringy for some people. Particularly for me all the Chucky costume strategy to get Qin's attention was painful to watch.

The pacing might be a little slow and not that exciting, but for me was okay; it was fresh and nice to watch.

I really liked the dynamic of Duang and Qin's friends, and I would have liked better if they had given us more scenes of them together and developed the story of Jamie and Marvis more. Still I understand the main focus was romance and not friendship :(

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