Reviews

mother love, sister inlaw love and hospitality love

To all Ma Xiao Yu's Internationals fans. The wait is over! We can now watch " The Love Of A Fool" with English subtitle! Kindly write down your review and rate for our future husband Ma Xiaoyu.
There's a saying, " Team work makes the dream work." So let's continue to support him. All I can say about this drama is, it's so beautiful and the scriptwriter and director together with the actors, had executed their role portrayal well. The drama was well done! Because the actors were all great! You can really feel the emotions that the actors tried to convey to the viewers.I like the ending because it showed the love Haoxi had for Zixhia that he was willing to pretend to be someone else just to keep her beside him. However, Zixhia was not true to herself even from the beginning. She fell in love with Haoxi but she didn't want to admit it. Haoxi was her husband's youngest brother and it was not long after her husband died that she found her hidden love for Haoxi was growing stronger. I watched it more than 1 time bevause I really wanted to understand the plot . For me, Zixhia was only making a fool of herself! even until the end of the drama for pretending that she was not in love with Haoxi. But the truth is, she has already fallen in love with him!
Guys, it's a really good movie! It's excellent. It's a must-see! Please watch and I am sure you're gonna love it! Let's support Ma Xiaoyu!

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Started slow but ended off really strong

Watched all 25 episodes on the website, so here's my review on it. I was about to drop this drama since the first 8 episodes were quite slow. We start off with this really interesting case about bullying and monopolization, but as soon as they introduced the Saturn1115 forums, then when it started to get boring.

Bowie Lam throughout this drama has been great as the chief inspector of the OCTB, it was awesome to see him return and after finishing this, made sense why he would return for this drama, will spoil it later in the review. Owen Cheung was also really great here as the chief inspector in the police officer but the twist is that he has D.I.D. and no one knows (which I found it dumb because there's no way they wouldn't suspect something's off) but Owen manages to control it and sees his second personality, played by James Ng, as a companion. He also has a much more darker personality, played by Ronny Lay. He has a great evil smile but whenever Owen tries to mimic it, I'm sorry but it was hard to take it seriously. Kelly Fu has HEAVILY improved for this performance. Her role here is much more memorable than No Room for Crime and Forensic Heroes 6.

Like I mentioned earlier, the first case was about bullying, but this shouldn't be classified as bullying. Wanna know why? Because it's about a grandson of a rich and wealthy family, Adrien Yau, kidnapping several people holding them as his own 'pets'. Why? Because they were actually part of a human trafficking ring that was about to be shipped, but he decided to keep them. Since his grandfather, Pat Poon, has a business that isn't so legit. However, after he was caught, he became a victim of the new seven deadly sins and the vigilantes killed him eventually. Same goes for the two victims of monopoly, animal abuse, 'pollution'. It's all ridiculous and felt like an after thought. Because the main plot that happens after Episode 14 felt like that was supposed to be the main focus and the seven deadly sins were just something they thought of to hide that twist.

Man, it felt like they did a complete 360. There was a track record in No Room for Crime and Darkside of the Moon where it starts off strong - incredibly mid in the middle - and then ends off extremely strong as well. But this time it starts off mid and doesn't hold back after it gets to that certain point. You're wondering, how did big stars like Bowie Lam, Monica Chan and Deon Cheung agreed to star in what it seemed to be a simple crime drama about a cult killing people for justice. Well, the twist is that there wasn't a cult, all of the people involved with the killings which was Monica Chan (Bowie's older sister that supposedly returned from the US in episode 4 who was revealed to be a hallucination in ep16), Deon Cheung, Bond Chan, Lucas Yiu, Amber Chan, Vincent Lam and John Chan, who were all revealed to be Bowie's personalities as he was suffering from D.I.D. as well. That is one hell of a twist that I'm surprised TVB managed to do well, especially after the abysmal twists they showed in Call of Destiny and Anonymous Signal. Ever since the twist was revealed after Episode 17, the show immediately hooks you up, every scene filled with tension. I was wondering in Episode 10 and 13, why they killed off Bowie and Owen's most trusted colleagues so early? Well, now it made sense that they wanted to make room for the development between Bowie's personalities. It was revealed later on that they were actually being manipulated by Deon Cheong, the most brutal personality of Bowie's who believed in justice over twisted values to kill the supposed sinners. So near the end, they helped Bowie stop Deon from killing more.

There is another twist though, originally, Deon was a personality created to resemble the person who killed his sister during the fire. The person who actually killed his sister was Raymond Cho's character. The fire was also instructed by Pat Poon. Originally I was wondering why were they even part of the show as they could've easily been removed after Adrien died. I feel like the most underutilized character was Jack Wu, the father of Adrien, who died from suicide. He didn't really do anything to progress the plot other than to be drunk every single time he appeared on screen after his son died.

So the final big battle was a wild one where Raymond and Bowie (controlled by Monica) was trying to set six people on fire in an abandoned building (forgot who they actually are sorry about that), among those four people includes Pat. After the fire started, the whole building collapsed. I'm ngl, the fire CGI wasn't the greatest but can we even expect great CGI from TVB nowadays? Among the people who were in the building includes Kelly, Owen, Bowie, Raymond and Yoyo Chen, Bowie's neighbor who he had a crush on. The final few scenes were actually really creepy and really diminishes Raymond as a twisted villain. They all managed to survive the building collapse except for Yoyo, where she gets stabbed by a piece of sharp concrete when trying to save Bowie. However, Raymond got up and took Bowie and Kelly to Germany, where Raymond hypnotized him into thinking he's his brother and that he was gonna get married to Yoyo, when in reality it was Kelly who appeared to be malnourished and unable to speak properly. That was such a fucked up twist and really establishes Raymond as an actual psycho. Owen managed to find their location, stop the wedding and finally convinced Bowie that Kelly was not Yoyo. I really love Bowie's acting in this drama, his emotional scenes actually felt genuine. Same goes for Owen when James was finally going to leave him in episode 22. Special mention to Gabriel Harrison who played a prisoner in this drama. Damn he lost a lot of weight for this role. Along with Benjamin Yuen who returned as his character from No Room For Crime who was actually the first victim of this seven deadly sins massacre. I felt that this connection was unnecessary but hey, at least we don't have to see a season 2 for that post credit scene to get clarified.

Overall, an actual enjoyable drama. Surprisingly more better than Anonymous Signal and No Room for Crime. If it weren't for the Saturn1115 storyline with Joey Thye as a victim of PTSD from being sexually molested who created the forums in the first place, I probably would've liked this drama more. That's probably the bad part that made this not that good. The ending was also a bit rushed. Despite the big fire scene, they suddenly transition to Raymond seemingly go undetected to Germany with two kidnapped victims. Ig that's just the perk of being super rich. Also we never get to see what happens to Raymond afterwards, even Owen. They did a time gap to show that in classic TVB fashion, Kelly doesn't experience PTSD. Bowie ended up in a mental institution to not further hurt anyone else, but Owen is nowhere to be seen at all. I was expecting some post credit scene that can hopefully clear up the emptiness with Owen and even Raymond, but nope, it just ends like that which is strange. But I still like it for trying something new with D.I.D., still strange that both Bowie and Owen, victims of D.I.D. can somehow be one of the highest ranks in their respective divisions in the police force. Also for the title, I've always been wondering about the 12 in it, although Owen had 3 personalities, and Bowie had 8, that would've made it 11 personalities in total. But the final scene in the finale revealed Bowie has another personality. A wonderful cameo made by Flora Chan who is supposedly Bowie's guardian. Even if it wasn't explained much, she said she had been with him the longest, so she was probably the one who kept Bowie from knowing that he had multiple other personalities. It was nice to see her again since her last drama was in 2018's Watch Out Boss. With the track record lately, I thought that Kenneth Ma would make another cameo appearance. That would've been wild but thankfully that wasn't the case.

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Alchemy of Souls: Season 2 – A Bittersweet and Powerful Conclusion

Alchemy of Souls: Light and Shadow picks up where Season 1 left off, delivering a darker, more emotionally intense chapter that beautifully wraps up the epic saga of love, fate, and magic in Daeho.

This season introduces a significant change — Go Youn-jung takes over the role of Naksu, now in her original body. While fans were initially unsure about the cast switch, she quickly proves herself with a graceful and powerful performance, seamlessly continuing the spirit of the character. Lee Jae-wook once again delivers an outstanding portrayal of Jang Uk, now hardened by loss and wielding a frightening level of power.

Season 2 is shorter, with only 10 episodes, but it packs in a lot — deep character development, long-awaited answers, and emotional reunions. The tone is more mature and melancholic, focusing on healing, redemption, and sacrifice. The romance between Jang Uk and Naksu evolves beautifully, filled with longing, pain, and quiet strength.

Visually and musically, the drama maintains its high standard with stunning visuals, intricate costumes, and a hauntingly beautiful soundtrack that enhances the mood perfectly.

Overall, Alchemy of Souls: Season 2 is a satisfying and poetic conclusion to one of the most beloved fantasy K-dramas of recent years. It’s not just a sequel — it’s a soul-stirring finale that stays with you long after the credits roll.

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Alchemy of Souls Season 1: A Fantasy Masterpiece

Alchemy of Souls Season 1 is a rare gem that flawlessly blends fantasy, romance, action, and drama into a captivating tale that keeps viewers hooked from start to finish. Released in 2022, this K-drama stands as a true masterpiece in modern Korean storytelling.

Set in the fictional country of Daeho, the drama revolves around a forbidden sorcery called the "alchemy of souls," which allows souls to switch bodies. At the heart of the story is the mysterious and deadly assassin Naksu, whose soul ends up trapped in the frail body of a blind servant, Mu-deok. Her encounter with the charming yet secretly powerful mage Jang Uk sparks an intense and emotional journey of training, growth, secrets, and unspoken love.

The world-building is phenomenal — richly layered with ancient magic, political intrigue, and mythological elements that feel both immersive and believable. The production quality is top-notch, with breathtaking cinematography, elegant costume design, and epic fight choreography that rivals any high-budget fantasy series.

What truly elevates Alchemy of Souls is its brilliant cast. Jung So-min delivers a nuanced performance as Mu-deok/Naksu, effortlessly balancing vulnerability and ferocity. Lee Jae-wook shines as Jang Uk, capturing his character’s internal conflict, stubbornness, and eventual maturity with emotional depth. Their chemistry is electric and deeply moving, giving the romantic storyline a compelling edge.

Supporting characters like Seo Yul, Park Dang-gu, and Jin Cho-yeon are equally memorable, each adding depth and warmth to the story. The drama never loses momentum, thanks to tightly written scripts, unpredictable twists, and moments of both laughter and heartbreak.

In short, Alchemy of Souls Season 1 is not just a fantasy romance — it's a beautifully crafted journey of identity, destiny, and love. Whether you’re a longtime K-drama fan or new to the genre, this series is an absolute must-watch.

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Come....Fall in Love....

If you thought you are immune to fluff and cuteness, think again, Gameboys will bring out that school girl in you, without fail. What is even more surprising is that with all that fluff and rainbow hues, it doesn't shy away from addressing serious issues that queer people face. This is a wholesome, adorably melting, and blissfully romantic story with a strong message.

BL-needle Score:9. Very High BL-ness

The dimply-charm of Gav, the awkward, self-doubting adorableness of Cai, and the darling shipper Pearl...the protagonists of this story will completely make you fall in love with them. Given the backdrop of the pandemic, it has very little action beyond through screens, but that does nothing to deter the appeal of this story, and neither you rooting for their puppy love, with a very satisfying ending, even though the impending separation between Gav and Cai looms ahead. With how adorable they are, they will make you want to live in this moment.

But I must mention that beyond the appeal of a all-through fluffy love story are deeper issues of the queer life - Cai's fear of judgment, inability to come to terms with being gay, Gav's endless strings of smart-sweet endearments and love-punchlines hiding the insecurities and the fear deep down of people leaving him the moment he is not able to please them, the intense and often irrational jealousy they both feel, part being teenagers and part since it comes with being queer and having a lot of self-loathing and inability to see themselves are worthy, and in turn, always afraid of being abandoned or rejected....the script weaves in all of these nuances of a queer life, albeit avoiding the pitfall of making it darker than is needed for a story like this. I would they did a great job of that - including serious issue and yet keeping it light and fluffy enough for everyone to watch it without feeling too heavy.

I am late to the Gameboys party, but boy am I hooked!!! Followed this up with the second season, and loved it even more.

As someone who grew up on 90s Bollywood, Gav's love punchlines so reminds me of SRK as a cocky lover boi in his early movies, and I want to use that famous catchline from one his most popular rom-coms to describe Gameboys -
Come... Fall in Love <3

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2nd Dumpster Fire of 2025 but a much Cheaper One

I solely wanted to watch and support WRC, because he's so talented that he deserves great roles and I haven't seen anything of his in a while. I didn't know what I was expecting other than I knew it was a low budget, but I'd never thought it would be a disaster of this proportion. This is literally the second dumpster fire of 2025 but a much cheaper one.

The only pro is WRC's acting and sword skills and the some version of a small bromance between him and the SML. Even that seemed very wishy-washy and very haphazard. There were some times when I really liked how they worked together, and you could totally tell that they were having some sort of secret plans that they never told anyone. Some of the costumes looked either burrowed or decent.

Literally, this thing had no other redeeming qualities. The ear bleeding sound and editing from someone who took a ton of drugs was horrendous. The music would sometimes drown out whole speeches and conversations and dialogues. The sound would cut in cut off without any warning. The FL though surprisingly in real life older than the ML acted 12. Their romance came completely out of the blue. It was not forced down our throats, but it was never explained either. ML as the emperor and the woman who played his mother are practically maybe 10 years apart and it's obvious and it's cringe. The constant runaround with the fake princess from a previous dynasty was such a moronic thing; just kill her and get it over with. The dude with the white hair that eventually became good though he started morally gray kind of antagonistic was just shallow, but I like him a lot better than her. She was just beyond saving and a crappy villain.

The amount of loopholes and plot holes was staggering. The storyline was a complete disaster did not make any sense. It's sort of started to come together toward the end, but you still didn't quite understand what the point of most of it was. The ministers for the emperor were just a bunch of whiny crybabies just like his royal uncle who I just wanted to hit with a bat so many times. Costumes were too big for all the guards. Everything looked cheap. I feel so bad for WRC and hope he gets better roles in the future.

Would I recommend it? Absolutely not if you value your sanity look at his other works everyone else in there are either new or they picked them up off the street I have no idea who any of them are.

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so. fucking. good.

for a japanese BL series, i was thoroughly impressed. especially with the intimacy. it was just enough, satisfying, and made sense.

the storyline was tasteful. set largely in high school, yet still unique from other series'. their chemistry was beautiful, everything felt from the heart which isn't something you see everyday.

every episode is about 20 minutes, so extremely easy to binge in one go, which i really like.

i have no notes. the characters and their actions made sense, there weren't any unnecessary discrepancies, and we got our matured, confident love in the end. very good series and one i'm sure i'll find myself coming back to.

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BL Twilight?? SIGN ME UP!!!

Is it a masterpiece? No. but if you’re into cliché vampire (mostly romance) plots and a fan of JossGawin you will enjoy it!!

Things i liked:

The romance between Mark and Tong felt natural, chemistry between them was great! Their kisses and intimate scenes were realistic and never felt forced to me. The acting was solid across the board.

At first, i wasn’t sure how i felt about JossGawin together. I knew Gawin since (Not Me the series) But for Joss, i didn’t really know anything about him.. But after watching this, I’m very excited for their future series together!!

Visually Joss and Gawin are STUNNING together. They're so sweet and soft to watch. And seem very close and match eachother well. Their chemistry On and Off Screen is beautiful!! And I’m 100% invested in the JossGawin pairing🫂🫂 Very excited to see them in Only Friends season 2!!

THE OST IS BEAUTIFUL!! Closer, Ever After, and (Just You) are the top on my playlist rn✨✨

The filming locations i LOVEDD. The flower-shop had a great design...it was really beautiful!! All the houses and rooms were very well designed. The lighting and cinematography was great too!

As for the people complaining that joss was shirtless/half naked for TOO many episodes is WILD.
Idk why are y’all complaining that’s eye candy for me😌😌 Neo was NOT joking about Joss having the nicest body in GMMTV 5555

The side characters:

Out of everyone, i enjoyed Nakan the most. His story was interesting and wish we got more from his point of view…
Miss Thara killed her role in this series (Her stepping on Nakan was hawtt ME NEXT-) but her storyline was predictable…
TonKla was cute (love you Neo) but did him dirty ngl😭😭

SO the main problems for me was…

The CGI:

I understand that this is a low budget series and we can really feel it, it's really a shame (there was not even a workshop for it!!!!!) so due to that the editing is pretty bad.. In EP 12 the green screens were so badly edited in😭😭 It distracted me SO much and took me out of the wholesome moment that they were having. (HOWEVER, the upside down eiffel tower scene - inject it in my veins cuz I ATE THAT SHIT UP)

The audio:

The audio was- well, let’s just say (Crispy at times) During a very emotional scene, it felt like they were using one of those five dollar microphones that got dropped in the river ngl😭😭 It FR took me out of the moment. Also background music was not my favorite. (I’ve heard worse though)

The plot/Story: Not getting into to spoilers.

There was lots of plot holes and things that weren’t explained well. Or just didn’t make sense. I didn't like how they did the flashbacks to the past cause it was so random and messy. And tbh I just felt like they put so many moments just to get the ep runtime. It felt forced and unnecessary, mostly the college scenes. Wish they would have put more focus on the (vampire plot)


Ending thoughts:

10/10 potential, unfortunately didn’t quite deliver.
BUT Did i enjoy it- %100 YES😩😩

So go ahead and watch it. Give it a chance :)

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A Beautifully Tragic Tale That Challenges Perception and Identity

The Prisoner of Beauty is one of those rare dramas that immediately draws you in and doesn’t let go. With a beautifully written storyline and emotionally complex characters, it explores deep themes of identity, perception, and the silent burden of beauty in a way that feels both thought-provoking and heartbreaking.

The acting is top-notch, especially by the leads, who bring so much depth and raw vulnerability to their roles. The chemistry is strong, the emotions are believable, and the inner turmoil each character experiences is portrayed with great nuance. The cinematography and soundtrack also add a lot to the mood, creating an atmosphere that’s both melancholic and poetic.

What I appreciated most was how the drama tackled the psychological aspects of its characters. It doesn’t just tell a story about how people look—it dives into how those looks shape their lives, relationships, and even sense of self. It’s a powerful message delivered with elegance and intensity.

That said, I did have one issue: the later episodes included a few character deaths that felt unnecessary. While they were certainly shocking and emotional, they didn’t always feel justified from a story perspective. In some cases, it felt like the drama was pushing too hard for emotional impact when the existing narrative was already strong enough.

Despite that, this is still a must-watch for anyone who enjoys character-driven stories with emotional depth and societal commentary. It’s not your typical romance or melodrama—it goes deeper, and it stays with you long after the final episode.

Would I rewatch? Maybe not immediately due to the emotional weight, but definitely in the future. It’s a beautifully crafted drama that deserves all the praise it's getting.

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One of the best BL dramas out there - I'm in love, will always be..Untill the End

To say that I loved this will be an understatement. Blissful fluff, adorable and yet realistic jealousy, coming of age, friendship, slice of real life homophobia, queer-positivity, it has it all....delivered in a neat package of fantastic acting, great production values, and a script that almost never feels awkward. It is one of the best boy love stories that I have watched so far, and trust me, I have watched a lot.

BL-needle Score: 10. Extremely High BL-ness

The season 2 takes off right from where season 1 ended and we get to see the lovey-dovey two-some time between Gav and Cai when Cai's mother (the kind of mother most queer person would like to have) tells him that he can stay back some more time with Gav given the situation in Bukidnon, where their family has shifted after his father's death. So they realise with almost-euphoria that they get to spend almost a month's time together. Their blissful times however are cut short with the arrival of Gav's ext Terrence who was driven out of his home by his father once he came out and came drunk-knocking at Gav's for a safe space, as a last, desperate way. Starting from that, the story does a wonderful job in portraying how Cai and Gav worked around the sensitive issue of hosting an ex who is in need, the jealousy, then the double jeopardy o f Wes, Cai's childhood friend also arriving to pursue Terrence (we get the backstory in the last extended episode of season 1 and some of it later in season 2), also Terrence's less-than-authentic and gratuitous entanglement with Achilles and its expected fallouts, Peral's never-wavering mothering and support to all of them, and finally breaking through the childhood trauma of being outed and hated as a queer person aunt Susan who arrives and spews a lot of very realistic homophobia.

I think a lot of us queer people can identify with each of these characters, their stories and traumas. The struggle with one's self to accept our own queerness, the refusal to acknowledge, constant emotional blackmail and even abandonment, from our natal families, the self-loathing it results in, finding a safe space with our chosen family, the phobia and othering even within the LGBTQ+ community, the all-season female friend who is almost always the best refuge, the insecurities of losing the loved one to anything and everything, the suffocation if being unable to stand up for yourself in the face of hatred and phobia from elders and the society in general, the toll it takes on our mental health, all of that....it has captured so many nuances and aspects of a queer life so well. A lot of these portrayals follow stereotypes, yes, but they are true nonetheless.

In short, the show has tried its best to include layers and layers of queer experiences in this show while still managing to keep it fluffy, overall happy, and adorably cute, which is no mean feat. I'm so surprised that this has only 14 reviews as compared to the original Gameboys which has 135...and also has a lower rating overall...while I absolutely loved season 1, I would definitely say season 2 was an improvement on that, in all sense.

Kokoy (Gav), and Elijah (Cai) are fantastic with their portrayals, the struggles, vulnerability, self-doubts, jealousy, first-love awkwardness, all-consuming teenage love...all of it is almost perfect. Also, Adrianna as Pearl, is very convincing. The other actors who play Achilles, Terrence and Wes are also quite good. Even with a slightly overdoes of fluff and OTT emotions, it is their portrayals and the script that makes it very believable and enjoyable.

I am so looking forward to the next season which is expected to be in NYC, where Gav has moved to take care on aunt Myra.

I'm in love...and will always be....Until the End. Strongly Recommended.

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Solid original story and characters, butchered by a terrible scriptwriting. Actors did well

If you decide to watch this drama, know it will hook you (as it hooked me) with a dark and serious note of political turmoil, introducing the reasons of a deep clash and hatred between two clans, once united in a common vision and a great project of canal constructions. Unfortunatelly, just after the initial interesting 5-6 eps, it will turn into a fluffy romance & beating around the bush.
C-drama scriptwriters regularly have the following problem: they can't decide a genre in which their story should be set, they can't accept a simple fact that if you open a serious plot, you must keep going with that premise, you can't suddenly turn it into an idol-drama. Personally, I don't disdain a fluffy romance either, if it is true to itself. If I am not in a mood to watch fluffy stuff, I'll pass, if I am, I'll watch it. But what I find unacceptable is the betrayal of the initial expectation the author(s) of the story created. Because it means the author(s) is manipulating me (=the audience) and challenges my intelligence.

Actually, this or these poor screen adaptor(s) challenged my intelligence even in those initial episodes, when the FL tried to impede the main male antagonist (Liu Yan) to flood the downstream of a canal by... burning the sulfur bags hidden in a granary (!) and destined to blow up a dam on the canal. In real life, by burning sulfur in that granary, a supposedly smart FL, would a) provoke explosive reaction and kill herself and b) intoxicate the whole city to the death with sulfur dioxide (SO2), probably causing a greater damage than the bad guy's flooding. I've thought, ok, it's a C-drama, no big deal...

But later another "granary plot" didn't make any sense and it regarded the main female antagonist, Su E Huang, who was able to take out of the Wei's granary a resistent wheat seed sent from the FL's clan, cook it and send it back, in order to force the ML to choose between his (Qiao) wife and his (Wei) cousin, who was supposed to preside over the granary. At this point, I've decided to check if these things happened in the original novel, just to know who to blame for the nonsense which started to accumulate, the author of the novel or the screenwriter, discovering nothing nonsensical or illogical happened in the novel.

The novel isn't great in its narrative but it is well structured in plots, actions and political intrigues. If the screenwriter sticked to it, she (they) would have done far better job. Instead, she (they) felt smarter, maybe even a better artist, able to re-write a perfectly logical and rational story and turn it into an idol-drama. Unfortunately, in this remake process, logic went to the drain. Differently from the drama, the novel MADE SENSE ALL THE TIME, its characters and their decisions, plots and motivations were realistic, both on the protagonists' and the antagonists' side. It makes sense and doesn't offend your basic knowledge and intelligence. I wonder if this dumb scriptwriter ever attended an elementary school? If she did, she would have heard of communicating vessels principle: you can't raise the level of the marsh by draining the connected river downstream...

Really, the amount of nonsense is not limited to the actions, the screen adaptation totally unnecessary exaggerated and/or twisted practically all original characters, making them nonsensical as well, Manman, the FL is this supersmart and superskilled woman (who would have blowned up herself in reality in the first eps, as I've explained above), Daqiao is a woman comitted just to one man to the point no other relation matters any more for her, and all the male characters are basically dumbed down.

Last but not least, the drama adaptation failed to maintain the atmosphere, the geist of its time, in many episodes. On the positive side, the chemistry between actors is ok, the artistic department also greatly did its job, horrible wigs aside. The direction was also fine until the last 5 eps, incredibly rushed, disorganised and incomplete.

So, unless you are able to completely switch off your brain, I wouldn't recommend you to watch this drama

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Super creative and modern

The cast delivers a solid performance as well that really pulls you in.

The chemistry between Tan Jianci and Li Landi is perfect and the banters between them, and mutual scheming is chef's kiss. Jianci is such an amazing actor who honestly just makes every character his own, and it's not exception in this drama, where he plays Tang Qi, a cosmetics phD who is as adorable as he is strategic, but struggles with an sensory overload eye condition.

Lost You Forever fans are in for a real treat as there are multiple LYF easter eggs scattered throughout the drama. The author of LYF is also the screenwriter of Filter. What a treat!

I'm loving all the characters including the side characters (Gu Yu, Lian Yu, Su Qingli). All of them are loyal to their friends and they aren't dumb at all and actually successfully help their friends face problems realistically.

For me it’s definitely an urban fantasy with comedic moments and a deeper exploration of the filters that we all have about ourselves and others.

This drama gets you laughing until your stomach hurts, cringe due to it's ridiculous antics, think twice about it's commentary about beauty and self love and fall deeply in love with Tang Qi and Su Cheng Cheng. This drama is amazing and well worth the watch.

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Mixed But Ultimately Disappointing Bag

A very mixed and disappointing bag. Let me start with the good.

1. I LOVED the acting. The main actors are absolutely lovely, both in their roles and out. Picked from relative obscurity, this show could not have found two more perfect people to play these roles. And I find myself enjoying watching their promo videos and fan videos of them far more than the actual drama.

2. The intimacy between the main characters. And no, I don’t just mean the sex. In fact, although I know everybody loves the honey scene, sploshing is just not my kink. And neither is wet clothing. Sensory nightmares for me. What I mean is the interactions between the main characters as they navigate and build their relationship, especially when it’s just them alone.

3. The music. There was one Korean song in particular that I actually added to my playlist, it was so pretty. I also liked the use of classical-style instrumental music. Much better than some of the computerized synth music they use in other dramas.

Now let’s talk about the in between.

1. The cinematography. I loved the way they used lighting in this, and some of the close ups and the creative shots are gorgeous. But there was also some weird shaky cam work that I didn’t enjoy, and also some weird framing that tipped over my line into unnecessarily abstract/artsy. But that’s likely just a personal preference.

2. Like I said, the NC scenes. Excellent intimacy and acting in them, but a couple sensory nightmares.

And the bad.

1. I don’t watch dramas to be devastated or melancholy. I have never understood why people enjoy this. Life is hard and sad and stressful enough without making myself sadder with the media I consume. This show, while there were some truly lovely, bright moments, was overall so saccharinely melancholy that it made me feel just generally icky. The biggest example of this is the episode near-ish the end where Akin spends nearly 30 whole minutes of it crying over the death of his grandmother. Yes, it’s very sad to lose someone so close to you. A real person would likely spend far more time crying and grieving. But this is a show. He reads the last letter he wrote to her and cries the whole time, then he reads her last letter to him and cries, then dreams about her and cries, and cries and cries… It’s so drawn out, I couldn’t even feel anything after a while. I just ended up skimming it. I shouldn’t feel like I need to skim through such pivotal moments for the characters.

2. Jin was honestly a bit of a creep. Like, I understand watching through the body of someone’s work in order to better learn your craft from them, but while that’s what he claimed to be doing, it came across more like he was digitally stalking Akin while also kind of forcing his presence on him irl and trying to better his craft so that he could be more “on his level” and thus be with him. His only character trait seemed to be being obsessed with Akin, which didn’t sit well with me. I don’t even know if he actually likes acting since it seemed like he’d probably be fine with giving it up if it meant he could be with Akin.

3. This is a little random and nitpicky, but I really despised Jin’s hair. It was in his eyes more than 90% of the time, which not only bothers me in a “isn’t that poking him in the eyes???” way, but it also means that Smart’s acting was impeded by his hair. Emotion is partly in the eyes, so if we can’t see his eyes, we lose access to some of his emotions. So this did not help the issue I had with feeling like his character did not have much personality other than being obsessed with Akin.

4. Why the heck would anybody with as much good sense and acting chops as Akin try to dramatically throw himself off a building just because he lost a “sexiest man of the year” award? I understood what they were going for. They were trying to show that Akin is getting older and getting passed over for the next big, upcoming, young star, and he’s feeling old and thrown away by the industry he loves and has staked his career, his life, and his self-worth on. But really, “sexiest man of the year”? I can see a major acting award doing this, but like, I didn’t see Akin as being that shallow before this…

5. Apart from all my personal feelings about the characters, the tone, and etc., the biggest nail in the coffin for me with this show is the sexual assault that was treated like a character cheated, except don’t worry because he didn’t… There is a situation where Akin gets stumblingly, passing out drunk around another actor he’s in a play with, and this actor takes him back to his place and tries to have sex with him. Akin is IN NO WAY ABLE TO CONSENT TO ANY OF THIS. Eventually, Akin starts mumbling Jin’s name and the other guy decides not to have sex with him and instead leaves hickies all over his body just to mess with him. Akin wakes up the next morning, thinks he cheated on Jin, and breaks up with him over it. Eventually, Jin gets a recording of the actor saying he didn’t ACTUALLY have sex with him, and all is well again. BUT EVEN IF AKIN DID HAVE SEX WITH THAT ACTOR, IT WOULD NOT BE CHEATING. IT WOULD BE RAPE. Because, like I said, HE VERY MUCH COULD NOT CONSENT. As it is, leaving hickies all over a passed out person’s body is definitely some flavor of sexual assault. But the show NEVER treats this like a rape situation, instead treating it like a cheating situation, and that’s just messed up.

So. While there were some bright, lovely moments in this show, there were also so many things that I just really did not enjoy and one major stain on the quality of this show that means I can’t get behind it. But I truly do wish these actors well and will follow their works in the future.

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