Reviews

"What kind of place this?"

Kyojo 2 had a new crop of recruits studying to become police officers under the watchful eye of Kazama Kimichika. Kimura Takuya returned as the no-nonsense Kazama who seemed to know everything happening in his purview.

Once again Kazama had to deal with students who shouldn’t have been able to pass a psych eval or physical fitness test in order to get this far. He ferreted out their secrets and exposed their weaknesses. Some would be allowed to continue, others were shown the door.

Kazama was extra hard on his students because of the death of an unprepared graduate that also resulted in the loss of his eye. This fact alone made it harder for me to understand why certain students were allowed to stay in the program. **Minor spoilers to continue this thought are below the date. **

Kimura Takuya, the silver fox with the worst prosthetic eye since the wooden one from Pirates of the Caribbean, is always compelling to watch. Unfortunately, for me at least, most of the students were completely forgettable or memorable for all the wrong reasons. Kazama’s past had a small reveal, the biggest reason I watched this second part. If you enjoyed the first Kyojo, it’s likely you’ll enjoy this second one as it followed much of the pattern of the first.

17 December 2025

Minor spoilers below:



**
Steal a computer mouse? You’re out! Steal the ingredients to make a bomb? All is forgiven. Lie to a superior? No prob. Can’t tell time? No problem. Sexual harassment? No problem. Bullies are okay. Skittish students are okay. I dropped my score when near graduation a student at the firing range was so delighted at hitting the target they actually looked down the barrel of their loaded gun! To quote Zootopia, "You're dead bunny rabbit!" No wonder they have to have a constant flow of new students!

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wattpad as a drama but not exactly done well..

Unfortunately once again Esther Yu's character is the same cutesy childish like vibes...honestly every drama i hope she takes on something new but....I feel like in historical dramas its still okay like Love Game was really good but somehow in modern dramas its hard to watch...

Ok that aside I thought of watching for Heyu and also cause i saw many spoilers for their chemistry online. The plot is really average but the drama is made for a visual feast. The biker/racer guy with a cute girl kind of vibes. But yea even with the visuals I soon got bored of the characters.

They get together in ep 15 but it feels like the director just decided to put all the sweet moments in 2eps, like cliche scenes after cliche scenes. I guess if you are a fan of the actors it is cute to watch!

I dont have much comments on any of the side characters no one was interesting...

Her fits are nice but seemed very unrealistic. Her motive to give up a life in canada and suddenly stay with her bro was also a bit...? cause at that time its not like she was dying in love with him...

anyway not my style so dropping...

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Nonstop Plot Twists But very Addicting!

Secret Makeover is engaging and addicting from beginning to end, but they sure take the “Who Done it?” Concept to a whole different level. I kind of reminds me of Burn the House Down, another J drama about a fire and a young woman who turns up to investigate, and literally everyone and their cat becomes a suspect and starts acting fishy. So many red herrings I don’t even know which way is up or down and who to trust anymore! The show stars Haruka Fukuhara who was the bright eyed bushy tailed junior realtor from Shōjiki Fudōsan/The Honest Realtor and the female lead from that show plays Mitsuko’s sister Mariko.

Secret Makeover had me crying at many points, and drooling at both of the male leads, but alas Mitsuko doesn’t care for either of them even though they are both in love with her… sigh, I don’t know why that makes it feel bittersweet to me, but Mitsuko is surely a headstrong woman who doesn’t actually need a male romantic figure at all. She stands on her own. She brings Natsu from the depths to the highest of heights through a total makeover inside and out- she transforms this single mother and both of her grown kids into self assured, confident characters. The show makes you feel the bond that develops between all of them- the Natsu family and the Kujo family.. Haruto is adorable from beginning to end, and so is Tomo. I love show- it shows that the total makeover goes right down to the soul. Heartwarming, shocking, suspenseful.. and gorgeous scenes and settings that look like they’re out of a storybook.

“If you change yourself, you change the world.”

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The final season which may not be final...

I can't help myself, but I liked this season the most. While normaly not so much into the bizarre overdriven japanese humor I felt, this season they dialed it back a bit and made it more "compatible" at least with me. Also the opening song this final season was by far the best imho :) Because it was not just silly I felt the acting was improved and the plots more interesting... but of course in the end, he failed to defy the world of BL.

As they are teasing a sequel, I would wish for them to show us the everyday life of the "background" lead (yeah, he does not have a name or if it was mentioned once I forgot) with Hatano in a "normal" series. Production quality was excellent as usual and I had a lot of fun watching this. So, if you have nothing to do and enjoy silly stuff, it's a recommandation from me :) (To understand the story with Hatano you need to watch the season before, but to understand all, all four seasons are required.)

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Those…Kisses?? HE WAS DEVOURING HER MOUTH

I don’t think I need to say much. Just go watch it my starving girlies. Just watch it

The seduction, the devotion, the hungry stares, that husky voice

ML was loving, devoted, always has her back, and always ready to pounce too lol. It was my firs time watching this pair and first time watching the ML too. He seems fairly new and I can’t simply wait to watch more of his dramas, especially with this FL. Their chemistry can put your screens on fire. I’m hoping he gets good (AND STEAMY) plots so that we get our share of much needed HIM. His name is Du Xin Fei btw!

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A Brilliantly Written Republican Drama on Financial Warfare at Macau During WWII

THE PREMISE

The story set in Macau during WWII spesifically after the Pearl Harbour bombing on how our male lead: He Xian, on his efforts in saving the economy of Macau from collapsing. What made this drama different from other Republican dramas are due to its focus on the financial and economy side of war in the battle of getting resources, maintaining value of currency and also exchange of intelligence at Macau at that time.

And what made Macau such an interesting place? This is because Macau is an 'isolated island' that are not occupaid by Japanese Imperialism. Thus it maintain a free market and law and due to its 'free' statue, lots of Chinese refugees find refuge on this Island during the war which made the Island's population tripled at that time.

UNITED FRONT

Another reasons on what made the drama so interesting due to how openly the people there practice their political ideologies. Usually, in Republican dramas, most people are so secretive whether they are Communist or Nationalist but here, they are very open even in front of Japan army and they can even openly conduct events to collect donation for war funds. This is because Macau is a 'free' nation under the Portuguese during that time which allowed this kind of free dynamics that are so different than rest of China at that time.

I think what makes me appreciate this drama the most is that it's not the usual Communist VS Nationalist political ideology but simply a united Chinese people fighting oppression by the Japanese Imperial Army. Mostly all of the war resources they get in this drama are given to the nationalist front army that fought the war at that time. No prejudice, no shade and no propaganda to show who is right and who is wrong.

HISTORICAL ACCURACY

The historical accuracy that the production team wanted to potray in this drama is simply amazing. They constructed 20 old buildings for the shooting of this drama. The writer also went to Macau 20 times in order to study the events that happened during that time and also interviewed the remaining descendants of He Xian which is our male protagonist in this drama. Since this drama based on his life and how he saved Macau at that time, the writer ensures that he properly wrote his life story during this period accurately to preserve his legacy and contribution he did that earned him the title of 'King of Macau' by the people there.

THE ACTING

This is the first time Ren Jialun is acting in this kind of role. He usually playing the cool, aloof and restrained characters but here he is just a banker and a normal citizen getting caught in war and fighting to survive with his family. And he gave He Xian such layers and emotional depth and narrative that we truly see him as He Xian instead of Ren Jialun the actor. The way he actually trembles when gun are pointed towards his head, how you can actually see fears in his eyes on many critical situations to how his whole body trembling with fatigue after carrying 1 whole boat of grain are simply amazing. He embodied the character to the fullest -- he made He Xian so human, yet so extraordinary at the same time. Then we have Lan Ying Ying as Yin Wan. She is playing the same resilient and strong woman role as she did in This Thriving Land and she did it so well. So can see the strength in her resolution and how she is so calm and steadfast even in difficult situations. She made Yin Wan such an intelligent character and it's so easy to root for her. Then we have Li Chun as the sweet and lovely Qi Wen. So so beautiful despite all the tears that she shed and she has this silent strength in her that is so admirable. She play the passionate wife so delicately that you can see her love for her husband in everything that she does - - standing beside him unwavering no matter how impossible are the situations. She is a scene stealer everytime she appears on screen. I love how the writer made her so lovely despite having her own mind.

THE CONFLICTS & COMPLEX CHARACTERS

I truly love the conflicts! It is just so nerve wrecking as the stakes are always so high and very realistic based on real life situations. I love how all characters even the Japanese are written with nuance as they all felt very human and complex. Everyone has their own troubles, goals, and objectives. He Xian has his own worries that he faced with ensuring the survival of his family to staying true to his principles to the later part in the drama where he is trying to save the economy of Macau from collapsing. Then we have the brotherhood gang with their own goal to capture their traitors and He Xian seemed to unintentionally assist the said traitor. Then the officer who took bribes and was caught and his own way of seeking justice. Then we have the espionage side of the whole political sides of the Chinese people. Then add to the mixed of the neutral Portuguese government who in charge of Macau. And this didn't include the Japanese who is the biggest enemy of them all. This drama covers the depiction of lives of people during the war from the elite, merchant, authority, police, spy, resistance army and normal citizen.

THE AMAZING WRITING FULL OF SILVER LININGS

I love how everything just seamlessly woven together between all these parties. The drama opens with He Xian applying for banking license at Macau and how his lives intertwined with all these people later. I like how the drama established from the first episode how brilliant is He Xian with the forex exchange scene since we need to know that and understand why he is able to open his own bank despite his unprevileged background. And I feel bad for him regarding the US dollar plot since it did paint him in bad light especially among his peers. Then add the destruction of his bank which makes him penniless at the end with 4 mouths to feed. So many thing happened yet there are silver lining in all these conflicts since he touched people everywhere with his kind and good hearts. And the scene where the boat dweller people comes and saved them, how awesome is that scene? This is usually a very good indication of well written dramas where the writer mixed happiness and tragedy equally that made watching experience highly satisfying.

I like how they show us the brutality of war and how it affect different people. Like how the British people used prisoners to do really dangerous stuffs or how they just left Hong Kong to fend on its own after the bombing. Or how the banking people cope with the Japanese takeover of Hong Kong and their failure in destroying all the notes and it ended up with Japanese getting 100 millions of cash for free just like that. To how useless is the Portugal government when they supposed to be neutral. Then add the foreign businessman that only interested to get more profit in the war.

I also like how the women are written here. The main characters are still men but despite that, they are not written as simply in support roles but active roles. Whether it's the female lead; Yin Wan and her help in getting funds for the war to He Xian's wife; Qi Wen which is written as more than simply his backbone. Her worries, her attempt to ask him not to go for the last day to hand over the last deposits, to asking him to help her in preparing to move to Macau made her simply human with her own thoughts despite her lovely and supportive nature as a wife. And how she has her own money, knowing how to manage the difficult situations and how she is ready to defend her husband even in front of hooligans -- and most of all, her trust in him has never weaver even at the the lowest point of their lives. It made sense why He Xian can affort to be 'reckless' sometimes since he has a really reliable wife to support him physically and emotionally.

And everytime I thought He Xian can't go anymore low (like how his son got sick due to malnourishment), then the drama gave us another scene that makes us question the brutality of war and how it affect normal people. When Mr. Ma comes to his house and see what his family prepared for New Year dinner, I swear my heart sank with him. 😢 He must feel very guilty how the small favour he asked from He Xian makes him hits rock bottom like that.

Then the scene where He Xian broke down in front of all his friends and family, I think many of us didn't realized how horrible the things he had to go through that day. Having to go through mass grave to find Xiao Yu, the girl who saved his entire family and later run away from his house due to his inability to provide for her and her mother is some crazy stuff you can't get over with. That kind of rock bottom place you reached in your life that basically kill all your desire to live. And that's whats war did to normal people.

I love how everytime they show rock bottom scenes like this, the writer never fail to write silver linings to the whole tragedy and make the drama so uplifting and full of hope at the same time. Amazing amazing writing.

THE ROMANCE

I love He Xian little family. ❤️ I love how He Xian always tell his wife everything - - or even when he wants to make any business decision that will effect the family, he always tell her as well and ask her permissions.

In one of the episodes, you can know how Qi Wen was worried to death for He Xian. She always had her eyes on him before he leaves then when he comes back, she just burst to tears with how relief she is.

Usually in Republican dramas, husband and wife always have kind of distant relationship but I love how the writer portrayed He Xian and Qi Wen as such affectionate couple. They always holds hand, they always hold each other's hands lol, reassuring each other and despite having 2 small kids, they still seemed like a newly married couple when they are alone together.

And even when they are with friends eating together at different table, He Xian will look at Qi Wen and smile at her. I just love all this tender and soft gestures they always reserve for each other. Their relationship makes the turbulence time they are facing at that time seemed bearable.

CONCLUSION

Everything about the drama has been amazing so far especially the acting, writing and directing. Don't miss this gem of a drama if you want to watch soemthing truly well written that made you gain knowledge whether in history or finance while watching this.

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STORY THAT FILLS MY HEART WANTING MORE

This is my first ever drama review, and I’m genuinely happy it’s for Sniper Butterfly, because I really, truly loved this drama. Honestly, I loved almost everything about it. The leads? Beautiful. The female lead especially yes, the age gap crossed my mind, but like fine wine, it somehow just worked. There were moments I cried a little, when she spoke about her divorce with her Dad, and she reading Wu's letter to her parents. Absolute kudos to the writer.

What I loved most is how the story unfolds with such sincerity. Every tiny detail felt intentional. You see the growth and journey of the leads so clearly. The female lead’s kindness is so sincere, and her vulnerability feels real.

And then there’s my dear Wu. Innocent, genuine, owning his true feelings. His sense of responsibility, his growth, his humility beautifully done. Watching him evolve was one of the most satisfying parts of the drama. I loved how both Cen and Wu loved each other and their mutual respect for one another. , and I have to mention Cen’s father too a genuinely good listener to the core. The bond between Father and daughter was heartwarming. Mom funny and relatable.

The relationships flowed so naturally believable, gentle, and beautiful to watch. I especially loved how Cen guides Wu during his little crises. You can literally see a young man trying very had to figure things out 😂 by himself.

This drama quietly tells you that things will eventually fall into place. Liked how simple the proposal was.

I won’t give spoilers, but this is definitely one I’ll watch again.

Five stars to the writers. Well done.

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Drop Everything and Watch

Legit. Pause your series! Me and Thee, Goddess Blessing You From Death, Head 2 Head, pause it! Don't start watching all those BL's coming out tomorrow either before finishing this! Pause it and come watch this. It is simply that good.
The intro to this series alone had be pretty hooked. Thinking this might've been a horror-esque series, but turned into was of the best love stories, with such a sad/longing ending, I have seen from a Thai BL, like... ever! So get the tissues ready, cause I didn't and now my hoodie sleeves are tear soaked, especially for the ending episodes (INCLUDING EPISODE 12.5!!!).

I went into it thinking their would've been a few aspects I wouldn't like about the time travel aspect, but I genuinely had 0 issues with it. So if you are worried about that, I am telling you now; ignore those thoughts and watch it. It's too good.

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Good watch if u keep in mind it's Japanese adaptation and don't think much about it

I don't think the series is that bad to get a 6.7. It's pretty good except there are 8 leads introduced in episode 1 so it gets kinda confusing but by the time u go to episode 2 u get used to it.

We have 4 couples lets review each
Our main couple: popular guy x guy who has touch aversion - here i think takumi's character made a lot of sense he's traumatized and scared that his boyfriend who he just started dating would break up with him so he's hesitant to open up. Then we have gii. They've tried to potray him as a nice caring guy but from ep 1 he's all about skinship and sex eventhough he knows his boyfriend's problem and yes he does technically assault his boyfriend to cure him later on. So that gets romanticized. He didn't know why his boyfriend had this issue didn't bother thinking it could be SA and he shouldn't do the same to his bf. Well but he does. From the flashback gii did exactly what his brother did force him the only difference was the brother blamed him for it but gii didn't instead it got romanticized as love. Also i didn’t like how the brother was given a clean chit just cz he said sorry before he died. What he did was grooming and SA and he did that for a long time it was not like a spontaneous thing. From what i saw i felt he was sorry for blaming him but not for doing the things he did. Also he literally had no reason to do that to his brother so i don't get it.

2nd couple: school's popular beauty x strong man with no brain (my fav pair) - i know people don't like izumi cz he's kinda violent 🤭 but i liked that. Otherwise yoshizawa is soo dense he wouldn't get it. He literally asked him to kiss straightforward but he still didnt get it😆😆 so he deserved those slaps to fix his brain and learn to say no to people

3rd couple: cold guy x golden retriever - i just felt he was pure cold not like just acting cold and feeling happy secretly or something but yeah seems like a nice guy from the flashback they show. Cold hut he notices things. I didn't like Mitsu being all clingy. I know he'slike a puppy character but thats cute when theres like 1% reciprocation here there was none. Nothing that special about this pair

4th senior x mr. Perfect - i was really rooting for this pair cz they were the most normal ones in the lot and no major red flags. Senior has this crush on this junior secretly and writes poems for him... how romantic right? Well he was straight and senior gir rejected😆😆 atleast they still kept the friendships didn't turn it into homophobia or make him hesitant to reject. It was like "sorry not into men" i just couldn't stop laughing cz it was soo direct😆😆

So yeah, it's a fun watch go ahead and watch it

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Trying to see a point, any point...but it is escaping me

Well, let me write this while I am waiting for the last 4 minutes to finish. They better be the best last 4 minutes of any movie ever made..for this review to take another turn.

I am also wondering why have I wasted other 157 min.

What was entertaining here?

Plot, where?

I truly have no idea what I have watched.

Absolute waste of time. I cannot even call it pointless violence or glorification of torture/fetish or psychological consequence of trauma... because there was no thread connecting on any level.

A skip.

Thanks for reading.

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When you don't have a clue about BDSM, don't include it in your story at all...

What could have been a nice production was a failure... If you don't have a vision of the story, don't tell it, when you include specific sexual practices then learn about it and don't include laughable scenes. And because they had no vision the series does not have flow, it's choppy mess from the beginning to the end.

I would not deny that the couple does have chemistry especially in the end, but the story is half assed and ruins this series. We know that you can tell a good stories in short episodes but they couldn't. Even when they kiss well, in this case sex does not sell.

So, this is a huge disappointment and should be skipped.

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Washed up and empty!

I hate to be this person, but what did I just watch and why did I continue watching ?!

I binged all 10 episodes and it simply doesn't work. When I read the synopsis I was expecting tension, push and pull between the two contrasting personalities and all the basics that usually come with a contract relationship trope. But I got NONE. I repeat none.

Calling this a story might be generous. The nature of their relationship demands and justify NC scenes but at the cost of the whole story? If I remove those from each episode, we will barely have a minute or two left. And honestly, I didn't find them appealing too.

Both the characters were less “written” and more “present". They spent most of their screen time staring into the void, as if hoping a personality or a line of decent dialogue might eventually appear. It didn’t.
I fail to understand this choice because if you are working with such a painfully short runtime, wasting it on hollow pauses and meaningless moments is just weak writing. Instead it could have used those minutes to build tension, give some depth to the characters, or just something more.

Coming to the chemistry between them, somehow it didn't work for me but it wasn't the worst part about the drama.
I have seen both the actors in Sweetheart service, and I didn't dislike it to this extent. I hope they choose and get better projects in future.

Again, I wasn't expecting this to be a masterpiece and I understand low budget restrictions so I won't nitpick on the visuals and sound effects but honestly, this isn't worth your time even though it's barely an hour.

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Love and Crown: A well-acted melodrama, but with a forced and exhausting plot.

I am a fan of both Ren Jia Lun and Peng Xiao Ran's acting work, and I have seen several of their previous projects. I knew more or less what to expect in terms of emotional intensity, especially with the type of roles Ren Jia Lun usually plays. However, on this occasion, “Love and Crown” failed to fully hook me.

The biggest obstacle was the constant and, at times, exhausting emotional weight. The decisions and actions of the protagonists created a sense of deliberate anguish that, far from immersing me in the story, ended up distancing me. There were secondary characters with interesting, complex, and selfish profiles, whose psychological motives promised a lot, but who were unable to shine due to the development of the plot. Many narrative twists felt unnatural and forced, as if the author were trying to pile on tragedies to justify the ending.

And speaking of the ending, that's exactly what it was: too many tragic events and forced twists led to an abrupt and sad conclusion that, rather than feeling like an organic resolution, seemed like the result of an accumulation of unnecessary misfortunes.

The protagonist, played by Peng Xiao Ran, made decisions that sometimes felt silly or illogical. However, I understand that these actions were driven by the extreme circumstances of betrayal, hatred, and love that both protagonists fell into. The drama explores well how intense feelings can cloud judgment, although that doesn't always justify the forced nature of some situations.

Conclusion: “Love and Crown” is a recommended drama if you are looking for an intense melodrama and enjoy solid performances in a highly emotional context. However, if you expect a fluid plot, well-developed secondary characters, and a happy ending that does not depend on forced twists, you may feel a little frustrated. It is a roller coaster of emotions that, although well acted, can be heavy and unnatural in its execution.

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