Reviews

Shunki Hashizume's mission

First chapter: an ice hockey player attempts suicide because he is gay. The minimum age to watch the series here in Denmark is 13 yo; poor teenager who is just discovering he/she is homossexual. As the series, which was primarily marketed to the LGBTQ+ audience (which constitutes total queerbaiting), is a succession of dramatic events, this same teenager will have as a benchmark that gay people don't deserve to be happy. Now it's understandable why the premiere of Soul Mate didn't happen in December, as planned. That month the LGBTQ+ community was intoxicated with the "queer joy" of Heated Rivalry. But director Shunki Hashizume is a defender of "queer misery," as he had already demonstrated in More than Words, the most homophobic series in history. For the creator, that teenager who is discovering him/herself deserves to suffer until his/her last drop of blood. This is Shunki Hashizume's mission in the world of entertainment. This is Shunki Hasizume´s agenda in the real world.

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this is what a kdrama should look like

okay so i went in a little nervous. a superhero comedy set in 1999 with apocalypse vibes is a lot to balance and kdramas don't always pull off this kind of tonal mashup. but wonderfools mostly nails it and when it wobbles the cast just picks it up and carries it.

the premise feels fresh without trying too hard. director yoo insik is so good at making absurd stuff feel grounded and the writing actually gives every misfit a real emotional arc instead of just leaning on the powers as the gimmick. the 1999 setting isn't just for the aesthetic either. the whole millennium dread thing bleeds into the characters in a way i didn't expect. production-wise it looks great too. the action is clean, the comedy lands and when it goes for the emotional beats they actually hit.

the cast is what makes this special. park eunbin is doing what she does best. chaeni is loud and chaotic but also clearly hurting and eunbin makes that switch look effortless. choi daehoon and im seongjae are SO funny and the four of them have that ensemble chemistry where you can tell they actually like each other. supporting cast is stacked too.

cha eunwoo though??? i've watched basically everything he's done since true beauty and this is the most disciplined i've ever seen him. unjeong is a hard role. mysterious, fairy-tale boy, carrying trauma he can barely talk about and instead of playing it big eunwoo plays it SO restrained. it's all in his eyes, his breathing, these tiny shifts. and then when unjeong finally cracks (you'll know the scene) it lands so much harder because he didn't tip his hand earlier. this is lead actor work, full stop. people who only know him for his face are about to eat their words.

i have no negatives but the villain arc wraps up a bit neater than the buildup deserved. nothing dealbreaking but it's just a note.

tl;dr: genuinely one of the best dramas i've watched recently. great ensemble, real heart, actually funny and eunwoo is so good. if this is the last thing we get from him before he's back from enlistment in 2027, what a way to leave us. already planning a rewatch.

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the Devil wears EYELINER

PLOT🗯️🗯️
The peaceful world of human and immortals is suddenly disrupted by the arrival of the demon god.
He intends to bring terror and pain to the earth. Everything seems lost until li su su travels back in time to track down the evil spirit and subvert his evil destiny.
Will she succeed?

FIRST CONSIDERATIONS:
let me start by giving a shout out to @charleymiamore.
I was about to drop this drama on the second episode, but this user reassured me about the show improving later on... And it absolutely did!
I am so glad I didn't drop this cause it's probably one of the best dramas I've watched.

THE DRAMA🗯️🗯️
The reason why i was about to drop the drama is the main female lead.
She travels back in time to stop the devil god who is still an innocent man at this point in time.
I understand her hatred towards him but girl, you are on a mission and are about to fail before even starting.
When she first sees this man she is basically leaving him to die in the snow and says all the possible things to make him dislike her.
Girl please😭😭 you have to avoid he turning evil, not giving him more reasons to hate this world.
This kind of wishy washy mentally in the female lead is present in the majority of the drama. Though understandable is it highly counterproductive.
In one scene she is literally punishing him with a whip! Stoppp please turn your brain on!!!!

Once we establish her mission the drama really kicks in and becomes highly entertaining.
I kid you not, except for the ending part, I wasn't bored.
I am usually scared by such lenghty dramas because I get bored so easily it is really hard to stay involved for 40 episodes. If you are like me, don't worry at all. Sure, some scenes might be boring from time to time but nothing worrysome.

THE CHARACTERS 🗯️🗯️
Where to start? I think I never felt so bad for a character as I did for tantai jin. He is one of the most tragic antiheros I've ever seen.
The world beated him up, then chewed him, then spit on him, then burned him up.
His destiny is so tragic and full of pain, betrayal I cried even thinking about it.
At first the actor wasn't really to my liking but he grew on me so much. He did a MAJESTIC job. I'm sure It wasn't easy because in many scenes he is basically talking to a different version of himself but he was wonderful.

Bai lu was great! Her character wasn't always my cup of tea but she was phenomenal and together they have a great chemistry in my opinion.

The other actors are also top notch. There is really nothing to add. Awesome.

THE BEST PART:🗯️🗯️
In these kind of drama we usually explore the 3 lives route: mortal, immortal, gods.
I tend to be pretty uninterested in secondary routes because they usually don't add that much to the story but this time it was so good I kinda stopped caring about the main plot and just wanted everything to end with the second part (the god story).
The battle between the gods and the evil god was so so so good. Guys it was a trip. I was so invested!
The fighting scenes especially were spectacular!!
I literally forgot this was supposed to be just a deviation from the main story.

THE ROMANCE:🗯️🗯️
I want to preface that if skin ship and lot of kisses are among your musts, this drama might not be your best choice.
The romance is an excellent enemies to lovers to enemies to lovers.😆
Two people fighting their love and hate for each other. Sacrificing, deceiving... Chef's kiss.
Visually though, even though we have kisses and intimate scenes I can't wholeheartedly say they are "hot".
This drama is more about meaning and deep feelings than superficial "two hot people making out".

I also really liked the other couples.
The Fox demon and the general were lovely and of course tragic 😭 I really cared for them unlike the third couple which I couldn't care less.

COMPLAINTS🗯️🗯️
I love this drama but of course I have to also criticize it ok?

🔪The cgi was mostly good but also goofy sometimes.

🔪the makeup was bad. It got a bit better towards the end but I'm definitely not a fan.
The ml has gray eyebrows for a good chunk of the drama. The eyeliner was a must for basically every character.
The foundation...oh my the foundation.. in many scenes you could clearly see the difference in skin tones between the actors' faces and their neck.

🔪the magical props looked so cheap

🔪How many times did the ml have different eye colors? The answer is ...yes!
In the span of seconds he switched so many times and some contacts lenses were so bad.

🔪There a lot of inconsistencies in many fields.
The protagonists are in a field and 2 seconds later the FL has a mortar , a pestle and is crushing herbs. Where did you get that girl?
Even when on the run they keep changing outfits. How? Just how?🤣

🔪Magic powers: when the FL arrives in the past she clearly states she CANT use use her powers because they are really weak.
This rule gets quickly forgotten and she uses her power more and more as time goes by.

🔪Sometimes they say something is diffilcult to do and 2 seconds later it gets done. (Like leaving the abyss)

🔪When tantai jin leaves the Sheng state he immediately becomes a loving king. Pretty weird considering the fact that he is unable to feel emphaty for anyone in this moment.

🔪The ending dragged a bit too much the whole being good/evil. It was an exausting back and forth.

🔪 Su Su biological father being evil wasn't really a plot twist. I don't know if the script intended it that way, because as the audience , we know what he did during the gods war.

🔪Li su su decisione making: I am gonna be honest. Sometimes I didn't understand her.
When she killed tantai jin in the mortal world, I don't know why she didn't tell him that she loved him.
You clearly love him, you have to kill him, you know you are the only person in this world he loves. You could have said at least something nice to this guy who only got hate in his life.
With hindsight this was probably done to push the third act of him pursuing her but I was too heartbroken to be rational🤣
She also hated him in many instances when it was actually her fault. She did something to him, he reacted , and she was butthurt.
Tantai jin always took shit for everyone for something THEY DID.
Poor guy😭😭😭

🔪🔪the dubbing is really bad in some parts.

🔪🔪 if you dislike seeing people spitting blood, that's definitely not the drama for you. that's the only injury they all experience 😅😅

BEST QUOTE 🗯️🗯️
"Since you don't want my love , you can taste my hate "

Man ...what a banger

CONCLUSIONS 🗯️🗯️
I could rant forever over this drama but I know nobody cares .🤣

Should you watch it?
YESSSSSSSSSSSSSS.

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Force for Good °8.3° °Excellent°

“I'm going to play along with it. You can criticize me for not being a good detective, but you can't criticize me for being human.”

It's raining, it's pouring. The lightning and thunder are roiling up above and the radio is playing a jaunty tune.

TGD is a 2020 release that is rated 92 on AWiki. It is 2 seasons consisting of 16 relentless 70-minute episodes each. It's an excellent cop drama. Is this the best K’op drama I've seen? I won't say that it beats out Flower of Evil 8.9, The Man from Nowhere 8.9, & Tunnel 8.5, but it doesn't owe them anything, either. We're always at the precinct, always fighting between underlings and irrational supervisors, always dealing with public perception and paperwork, and the boys are always working together as a unit trying to do the right thing in a very wrong world. The detective team pushes through to investigate a matter even though they are being pressured in many ways to not do so. It's the most coppie K”op-drama I've seen. Screenwriter Choi Jin Won (Untouchable) & director, Jo Nam Gook (Captivating the King), outdid themselves - the palette is bright at times, but it's overwhelmingly an umber tone: Earthy and slightly dark. It's a perfect match with the writing. I'll watch anything of theirs.

Jang Seung Jo is “I've-never-heard-of-crefit-card-limits” O “Ji” Hyeok. He's from a rich (but quite dysfunctional) family. I've seen him in Chocolate-6.5, Death's Game-7.8, and Familiar Wife-8.5 (which was a surprise treasure - It's wonderful). In TGD he's the /new/ guy. He's been a detective for 9 years, but he took a year off (😬❓) and now he's transferred into their unit (😬❓). Let's get this out of the way. This is a beautiful man. This actor is a 10. It's impossible to be much better looking than this guy, objectively. It just comes down to personal taste. This is the best character he's played out of what I've seen. Cool on the outside, but fiery determination underneath. They've actually mussed him up for the part, so he's not looking his best, here, but he is acting his best.

The new guy looks like trouble to Kang. Kang don't NEED trouble! Son Hyun Joo (Signal-8.6, Spring Day) is “Kang” Do Chang, our truly GOOD Detective. That means he doesn't fit in anywhere. His credits date back to 1993; He's been around. Here, he's a senior detective awaiting the results of his exam and possible promotion. This guy is an Eeyore type. He looks depressed… even when he's smiling. (Did he smile? Now, I don't recall! ). Kang's life hasn't been all strawberries and cream, either. His divorced, alcoholic sister is living with him, which means there's no peace at home. He's been passed by for promotion after promotion because he can't play the politics game. He's a serious cop and he'll do his job, whether he's told to or not. All too often, he's told not to. His juniors are now his seniors. He has no wife or kids, though there's reference made to a past heartbreak. He was dumped practically at the wedding altar, His live-in sister (Baek Eun Hye from Family by Choice & The First Responders is Kang Eun Hee) is a former judo champion, but she's losing her battle with marriage, motherhood, life in general, and sobriety: She's in a nasty divorce, she doesn't have custody of her son which is a constant, relentless source of pain. She's going for custody, but it is an uphill battle. Her closest relationship is with Soju. She takes her anger at herself out on her brother by way of sarcasm, mocking, and bitter complaining. {People do this to family because they can get away with it. I've taken to calling this practice emotional cannibalism. It is disgusting. Most of us don't realize we're doing it, being stuck in a junkie cycle where we're slaves to our emotions. Check yo-self. Really. Tearing apart family is tearing apart oneself! Refuse to get hurt or offended. Don't engage. Separate from toxicity; don't be a part of it. Break the cycle.}

Lee Elijah (The Last Empress, Children of a Lesser God) is reporter “Jin” Seo Kyung. She and Kang get along, but she and Ji did not hit it off. He called her greedy while she called him lazy and self-serving. Ouch. They warm up to eachother eventually. I hadn't seen this actress before. She's beautiful, and she does a nice job, but I got weary of the director's habit of taking long shots of her concerned face.

Oh Jung Se is a fabulous actor. Here he plays Oh Jong Tae, Ji's cousin. My first exposure to him was as a special needs character in It's Okay to Not Be Okay-9 - He's perfect. In Revenant he's a professor of folklore. (Dang, I wish I had majored in that.) He's also in the popular shows Hot Stove League & Mr. Plankton, which I intend to get to eventually. Ji Seung Hyun (Search: WWW, Team Bulldog: Off-Duty Investigation) is Yoo Jung Seok. I've seen him in Why Her?-8 & The Worst of Evil-7.7. He's totally solid.

Shin Dong Mi plays investigator Yoon Sang Mi. She's a wonderful actress. She was fabulous in both Hi Bye, Mama!-6.5 and Record of Youth-5.8, two shows that could have been better. In these roles which skew comedic, she's practically the best thing about those shows. Here she's in a more serious role. Her character kept me uneasy. She discusses how she perjured herself in court once and hasn't been able to sleep since. BUT she would do the same thing again, because that's who she is, “Suffering is optional. Once you admit how selfish you are, you will suffer alot less,” she poses. Well, that's some rarified honesty, but I don't like this woman. Trust a person like that at your peril.

The women are central to this story and they are strong, at least. Lee Ha Eun (School 2021) is drug dealer Lee Eun Hye. She's well casted - super creepy giving off an air of half-rotted + wholly-ruthless. Lee Hyun Wook plays bad guy Park Geon Ho in eps 1-4. He's a nice looking guy and he does a good job. I've seen him in Mine-8 & She Would Never Know-7.3 as a less than respectable citizen. It looks like he's recently been cast into leading roles. I'm looking forward to seeing what else he can do.

Jo Jae Yoon is Lee Dae Cheol, who may have been wrongfully accused of murder, and his execution date is nearing. He has a tearful scene with his daughter and then wirh the guards escorting him back to his cell. He's magnificent. Usually playing support roles in hits like Defendant, SKY Castle-9, Descendants of the Sun-8.3, and Mouse, he is one of the leads in The Escape of the Seven shows. Lee Ha Eun (School 2021) plays his daughter, Lee Eun Hye. She's has a challenging role. Her father was locked up for years and she ignored him. With his execution date imminent, she reconnects with him. She's been scraping by and is connected to the dark side of the streets, but her soul longs for something better. Her performance is excellent.

The entire police team is great. They each have their own ideas, but they work as a team. One reason is due to pressure from the chief, played by Son Jong Hak. His arc in the show is refreshing. This guy is everywhere with 95 movie/drama credits. I've seen him in The King's Affection-8.3, Flower of Evil-8.9, Familiar Wife-8.5, & Misaeng: Incomplete Life-9.1 ~ masterpieces, ALL ~ He's always in a supporting role, but he's the lead in Jinx, an upcoming film. He often plays a somewhat slimy authority figure. Here, that's what he looks like at first, but it isn't that simple. We got a couple pleasant surprises. The team does lots of group jogging. The running comedy bit is the entire team running from or after something or someone. We see it in the first and last episodes and many in between.

TD shows more of the reason that 🇰🇷 has the 3rd or 4th highest suicide rate in the world. The people are under constant pressure. Everyone must act worshipful to their superiors while corruption is rampant. Perhaps it's partially a cumulative effect, but I feel the weight of 🇰🇷 society in this show. “In the end, people only care about themselves.” Self-interest is what keeps the corrupt house of cards standing. We are all complicit, sadly.

“Yes, it's true that my life's important. But sometimes, other people's lives end up determining my life.” None of us act or fail to act alone. There's something I've learned that I was never taught while growing up about evil: Evil people know how to make the problems and then offer us their self-serving solutions. That's exactly what's going on in TGD. Yes, there's a psychopathic villain, but there are even worse villains at work in the shadows.

TD does have good natured laughs. As the pressure from the corrupt leadership weighed on the unit they go full rage-room in the office one day. It's glorious. The root word of corruption just means something rotten; something that's no longer in useful shape. It's the act of turning oneself into a piece of exceement. TGD shows the slow creep of corruption. People make compromises for selfish reasons. Some of the reasons are understandable, but they are still self-motivated. We want our jobs, our security, our comfort, our rewards. Looking the other way once in awhile doesn't seem like such a bad thing, but in the end, people who make these compromises start to change. They become less compassionate. They become more edgy and less understanding. They become more selfish. They start to despise those who try to do good. They don't want to feel icky about themselves, so they try to turn the good deeds and good intentions of others into something else. TDG is excellent in calling this out.


QUOTES🗣

Do you know the best way to cover up the truth? Make the victim disappear.

You do know what makes people happy or sad, do you?

You can't do this job with a sane mind.

It's going to be harder for me to trust people from now on.


IMHO〰🖍


📣8.5 📝8.4 🎭8.5 💓5 🦋4 🎨7 🎵/🔊6.8 🔚8.5 🤗6.8 ▪ 🌞4.5 ⚡6 😅2.5 😭4 😱3 😯3 🤢5.5 🤔5.5 💤0


Age 16+ Language: R-rated w/ f 💣💣 violence

Re-📺? Possible



⛔Spoiler⛔

⛔

⛔

We watch most characters, many of whom we want to like, pursue self-interest and let a man die. An innocent man. Pursuing self-interest is a form of weakness. It's a moral and emotional weakness. Weakness is just as bad as evil because weakness always enables evil. It stands back and lets wicked people prevail. How is it any better then?

We want to give people a pass if they're weak. They stoke pity in us. We want to scry the motives of people and give allowances to those whom we identify with more, but that's our moral turpitude. Midway through S1, the show becomes heartbreaking. I want to take three of the main female characters and smash their heads into the wall, frankly. (I guess that's my moral turpitude.) Every decision we make changes us for the better or the worse. When we choose self-interest over what is decent, we don't only change ourselves, but we pile on weight that we have to carry for the rest of our lives. These decisions are so hard in the moment that if we haven't already decided to do right, we will probably choose wrongly. The right thing to do it's almost never the easy thing to do. For me, it all comes back to the spiritual. We are physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual beings, yet it seems our society thinks the spiritual side of the square isn't crucial. It is.


In order of ~lite&trite~ to ~heavy&serious~ you may also like:


⚖Spies, ©🅾🅿§ & Robbers (some w/ a fantasy✨️element)
Mad For Each Other-7.7 ~ silly fun,
Crash-7.5,
Vincenzo-8.2,
Flex X Cop-8.5,
Man to Man-6.7,
Bad and Crazy-8.4,
The King: Eternal Monarch-8.3,
Oh My Ghost-10,
Big Mouth-7.4,
Han River Police-7.1,
Bad and Crazy-8.4,
Inspector Koo-8.4,
Missing: The Other Side-8.3,
A Beautiful Life-7.4,
That Winter, The Wind Blows-7,
Vagabond-8,
Prison Playbook-8.4,
Private Lives-8.1,
The First 1st Responders-7.8,
K2-8,
Tunnel 8.5,
When the Camellia Blooms-8,
Parasyte the Grey-6.9,
Signal-8.6,
The Worst of Evil-7.7
Revenge of Others-8.1,
The Good Detective-8.3,
Sisyphus 8 (give it 2 episodes, ep1 is confusing), The Defected-8.2,
Iris-8,
Awaken-8.7,
D.P.-8.4,
The Man from Nowhere-8.9,
Moving-8.5,
Beyond Evil-7.4,
The Defected-8.2,
Gangnam Bs-Side-7.2,
Flower of Evil 8.9,
Oldboy-9,
A Shop for Killers-8.7,
Black 9,
The Cursed 8.3,
The Wailing-8.8,

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Were you hoping for Only Friends 2? Dream On..

It pains me to say that this was so bland that calling it a watered down version of Only Friends would be overly generous. Only Friends was not exactly a masterpiece in storytelling but its appeal was that it was fun and messy and wasn't afraid to make the characters incredibly flawed and unlikable, to the point of being almost irredeemable. Every character in this was almost messing up but not really, almost cheating but not really, almost blackmailing but not really.
Where I am from we have a saying that goes "too much oil and no pancakes at all" and I feel it summarises this series perfectly.

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Here to watch one last JeffBarcode drama? Don't bother.

I was excited to see one last JeffBarcode drama as there won't be any more but this was so weird id advise everyone not to waste their time watching. The drama is in 3 languages (Thai, Korean & English). Everyone speaks in Korean and it's set in Korea. Except Jeff and Barcode speak only in Thai. One character only speaks in English. The subtitles are rage inducing. The plot makes almost no sense at all. The ending is abrupt and leaves a lot out. To be honest it was like watching a too long didn't read version of a story. It was honestly the weirdest drama I've ever seen.

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The Unexpectedly Dangerous Power of Mystery and Good Chemistry

Parallel World is one of those dramas that sounds suspiciously chaotic when summarized: mysterious disappearances, hidden worlds, strange creatures, desert folklore, survival, unresolved grief, and a group of emotionally exhausted people wandering through enough sand to personally challenge their hydration levels.

And yet, unlike many dramas with fantasy elements that immediately throw twelve systems of magical politics at you and hope confusion somehow transforms into emotional investment, Parallel World earns your trust slowly.

The fantasy element never feels pasted onto reality.

It feels buried inside it.

A large part of that comes down to the setting — an actual desert. A real one. With real wind, real dust, real sunlight, and people who look appropriately inconvenienced by survival. Turns out physical environments still matter. Nobody mysteriously survives danger looking softly moisturized and emotionally untouched. The exhaustion feels real because much of it probably was.

Apparently actual locations still work. Revolutionary concept.
Because once the physical world feels believable, the impossible becomes easier to accept.

A hidden realm beyond Yumen Pass? Supernatural rules? Desert mythology operating like forgotten folklore no one fully understands?

Under normal circumstances, I would have questions. Several — including why a rooster named ‘Valley Guardian’ somehow carried himself like local management during a supernatural desert crisis.

Instead, Parallel World quietly hands you atmosphere and says:

“Trust me for a minute.”
And you do.

Not because the mythology is perfectly explained — it definitely is not — but because the mood stays stronger than the confusion. There were moments where I understood every sentence individually while remaining only moderately informed about the overall situation. Some explanations arrive suspiciously late, the pacing occasionally wanders into scenic contemplation, and yes, there were moments where I quietly suspected the plot itself had briefly wandered into the desert to think about things.

A few subplots wobble a little, if you inspect every mechanism too closely, there are moments where the storytelling feels slightly more confident than coherent.

Fortunately, the emotional core keeps things grounded.

Ni Ni carries Ye Liuxi with the kind of effortless confidence that makes overexplaining unnecessary. The character could have easily turned into another market-tested “strong female lead,” but instead she feels human: sharp, capable, emotionally guarded, occasionally reckless, and charismatic enough that the script never has to repeatedly remind you she matters.

You simply believe her.

Bai Yu spends most of the drama looking like grief accidentally learned how to drive. Chang Dong’s sadness never feels performative. He carries it quietly, heavily, like someone emotionally running on fumes and unresolved grief.

The chemistry between them also benefits from restraint. Not dramatic soulmate intensity after three emotionally charged glances, but trust built through survival, emotional hesitation, and two damaged adults slowly realizing they no longer want to walk through difficult things alone.

Messy.
Quietly moving.
Unexpectedly persuasive.

Which, unfortunately for my emotional boundaries, worked rather well.

Now, is the drama flawless? No. But if you enjoy mystery, atmosphere, restrained romance, emotionally wounded people, and stories willing to linger in silence rather than constantly explaining themselves, Parallel World has a strange way of pulling you in.

Unlike technically cleaner dramas that disappear from memory two weeks later, this one leaves behind texture.

The wind.
The loneliness.
The feeling that impossible things almost make sense if the desert is large enough.

8.5/10 — uneven in places, a few subplots wobble, but atmospheric enough that I stopped questioning the mythology and simply followed it into the sand.

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Absolute Masterpierce

So i just finished this drama and the feelings are so intense, this is probably the best historical/politics drama i'have seen so far. It's a masterpiece.

The Rebel Princess is the first and the only one drama with the famous movies actress Zhang Ziyi and with Zhou Yi Wei (the ML) they doing a fantastic duo. Every actors in this drama are so good but this mature couple is so freaking good, the chemistry is so high!

The story is very well written, 68 épisodes and not a single one i didnt liked. The mature romance especially is the perfect example of how you have to write it.

The OST, the musics my friends...It's probably the best OST that I’ve ever listened for a drama, so magic , full of feelings.
The costumes, the sets for the filming, it's so perfect.
It’s one of the most expensive dramas ever produced and i can understand why, you dont see everyday this level of production.

I'm pretty sure i will rewatch it one day, and now i want to see all the movie of Zhang Ziyi!

Masterpiece!

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Packed with cuteness and yearning!

When I started watching this, I already had heard about it and was aware of the insane amount of hype it got. Curious, I binge watched the drama and honestly, it was one of my best decisions.

Plot is about Sang Zhi (played by Zhao Lusi), who has a secret attraction towards her brother, Sang Yan's (played by Victor Ma) best friend, Duan Jiaxu (played by Chen Zheyuan). She tries to pursue him but he looks at her as a sister only. But eventually when Zhi grows up, Jiaxu realises his feelings towards her and goes on to pursue her.

Now, coming to the story. It was literally a breath of fresh air. I have seen a lot of C dramas where the FL falls first and its kinda repetitive, but here Sang Zhi's attraction doesn't have that madness. It's soft, it's youthful and it will surely make you root for her. Sang Zhi is a reserved girl, doesn't go around throwing tantrums (except with her brother) and doesn't do cute things forcefully just to appear attractive, and that's what I like about her. The flow of the story is also good, there are little to no plot holes and keeps you hooked till the very end.

Duan Jiaxu's character is complex yet extremely likable. He had a lot on his plate; but didn't end up making it his whole personality. He's not the typical cold hearted ML who had a dark past. He's cheerful, funny, loves to pull people's legs and also, a very hard working guy. I could never imagine someone else other than Zheyuan as Duan Jiaxu. He acted the character like his whole life depended on it, and nailed it as well.

As for Sang Zhi, she's one of the best FL I've seen. A total green flag. Doesn't talk much, is helpful and also, very passionate about what she wants. She doesn't go around the ML the whole day and doesn't end up making it her whole personality. Zhao Lusi breathed life into Sang Zhi. She has to be the perfect person for this role.

Sang Yan is there for you to cheer you up and make you laugh when things get too heavy. His and ZhiZhi's banters are funny and the sibling dynamic is so well portrayed. Victor Ma will always be the funny Sang Yan.

I would say, this show perfectly deserved the hype it got and is one of the best modern C Dramas in recent times. The OST is cute too, one is sung by Lusi herself and it's very wholesome. The other songs will make you nostalgic too.

It's worth watching. Like worth watching a 100 times!

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Inside the crevices of our minds

May 15, 2026

I love Yumi Cell's Season 3, I only completed this season as the other seasons where kinda a snooze fest to me. Regardless, I think that in the webtoon, I already had a strong grasp of the plot even though I never finished it either.

I really love the portrayal of Yumi here, I love the progression she had from season one to two and three. I think that her overall growth in season 3 is the reason I was finally able to complete this season. Maybe Ill revisit season 1 and 2 again to actually complete them. Regardless, I don't think you truly need to watch all of season 1 and 2 to get the full details of the plot.

I love this little slice of life, henceforth a little deep dive into our brain thinking processes are just chef's kiss.

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Great cast but depressing and ultimately terrible story

For my review I'll start with the positives. Acting, setting, and time period are all compelling and well done. The general time period circa 1875-1900 is incredibly interesting and it tackles a lot of interesting issues regarding industrialization, nationalism, and the issues regarding China in the time period. Unlike other periods this can be portrayed relatively innocently in the context that it doesn't feel like the censorship board impacted the dialogue or plot much. The female lead is great and viewers will be able to enjoy the arcs of other main characters.

That being said this story is way too long and has such a disappointing pay-off. Let alone a happy ending, practically every character arc and story is completely depressing and ends with tragedy. I've watched and read a lot of "dark" books and shows and this one was one of the few where I felt disgusted about the complete lack of joy and hope within the story. Every single romance and plot line is an unmitigated disaster due to outside interference or external circumstance. How they handled the relationship between the two main characters is just unforgivable for this format. To watch 74 episodes (I mostly watched at 1.5x-2x due to how slow-paced much of it was) and end in that fashion is just not good television. Having a tragic ending with only the smallest remnants of positivity and happiness is fine for a movie, mini series, or play. In those formats you spend ~3 hours watching. For something with a view time around 65 hours it is unacceptable imo.

If you like the time period and are interested in a tragic romance/revenge show with financial elements you'll probably enjoy it. If you want any form of a happy ending this show is not for you!

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Great acting and chemistry saved a wasted plot.

The most important thing here is the acting. Specially Mix as Dean. I think is the most remarkable thing in all the series. Alongside Mix, I would like to mention Boom as Raffy and Earth as Jack. All the ast made a great job, but the most impressive for me and what got me hooked to this series was Dean-Jack and Dean-Raffy dynamics. The chemistry between EarthMix is tale as old as time, and Mix and Boom chemistry as two enemies divas was VERY good. I had to said tho, Mix carried the emotional and heavy drama scenes of this series. He's truly and amazing actor. The acting in general is what is more remarkable.

This series had a lot of potential, honestly, and the result is far from being 100% disappointing. I think it's important to understand that Dream On isn't a second season per se, Only Friends franchise would function as an anthology, and that's how I'm going to treat it for this review. First I want to talk about the characters, because they are the most important part. In OF, the Business Administration friend group were showed as toxic since the start but in OFDO the dynamics are different. The friend group here are Jack, Dean, Tua, and Timmy, and they are scripted to not to be a toxic group. What join all these people as a plot device is the stage play not the friendship, the plot works in a way that opens from the friend group adding the brother of one of them, the enemy of one of them and the crush of one of them to the mix through the play.

Remember that the premise of Only Friends is what its original title almost was: HURT PEOPLE HURT PEOPLE. That's what connects the seasons of the anthology. And if they make a third, that's what will connect them. Hurt people hurting each other, intentionally or not. In that respect, Dream On DOES delivers. The characters have their flaws, some more pronounced than others. They aren't perfect, but the point isn't for them to be; it's to see what the script does with them.... And the thing is, script messed up some times with this. It's important to the main characters to work as characters aside from the couple plot, with other relationship more than the romantic/sexual ones. Jack, Dean, and Raffy are introduced as the 'bad behaviour guys,' while Rome, Arnold, and Tua are the 'good guys.' We know enough about Dean, Raffy, Jack and Tua's personal plots to follow up the reasons behind their actions but I think not about Rome and Arnold. That missing depth would be more appreciated. Jack and Rome stepbrother plot is wasted, and subsequently the interesting friendship/companionship between Dean and Rome who would give more weight to Rome's 'betrayal'. Also Arnold having confusing feelings for Dean isn't showed or even talked as a thing until very late. We never see Arnold having second thoughts about Dean for almost all the series and then suddenly he was confused? That's came from literally knowhere.

Theres also plots that lead to nothing. Jack alcoholism was a perfect chance to show the different ways a person can be dependent of substances and different kind of addiction recovery, relapsing, etc. Everything is underexplained. Yes, in some cases people who deal with alcoholism in the past can drink alcoholic normaly afte but since any of that is mentioned see Jack drinking after his time in rehab feels generally lacking. Dean being drugged without consent, something is never spoken after and just a justification so the audience don't pick a fight for the almost kiss (who didn't work and made it worse, actually). Rome working in parties were not so legal things happens is also a wasted chance. All the Dean being a host and the leaked video is underplayed. Dean apologies with Raffy but Raffy doesn't apology with Dean? Their tentative friendship is also wasted. And speaking of friendship Dean and Tua friendship needed a deep talk, I liked the scene in the roller coaster but I don't think it was enough.

And Pete's crimes? Did he give back the money? Nobody reported him? The series throw things in the plot but there's no committing to develop it further. Other thing that could be managed better was the time skip that doesn't feel right and every couple seems to be in a different moment of time. For example, for Jack and Dean one year is very little for what they show, their lives now, their careers and their maturity doesn't make sense in only a year. They relationship is still kind of toxic and codependent that I can take it, ok, but that time skip was a joke. Five years and I bought it, but only one year? Same with Rome and Raffy, for them it's looks like it passed like 3 years, not one. ArnoldTua feels like only one month passed. And Timmy? Someone wants to think about Timmy?

Now, Boston. They brought him back basically to give him and BostonNick arch closure. (And of course, because of the hype). That's fine. I liked to see Nick moving on and being happy, also not indulging Boston.

NOTE! Even though I point out what the series failed at, it doesn't mean I didn't like it. It has the heavy mess and emotional drama we were expecting, the characters are memorable and it works well in the same universe. "It's not chaotic enough, everyone's not kissing everyone." And that's partly true, and I understand that casual viewers might be surprised or that the title Only Friends fills everyone with expectations, but I was already prepared for this. In fact, many of us who have been closely following the Dream On process all this time, from filming to its current airing, aren't surprised by the lack of pairings because it was made clear that they would take into account the feedback (some people seems to forget all that) from Only Friends when developing the script for Dream On.

The director (P'Ninew) worked with what he was allowed, because not mixing the couples isn't a creative decision this time; it's an ADMINISTRATIVE and PR decision. And that's something that's been implied many times. I admit that I personally would have liked to see Boston and Tua kissing in the flashback, Rome and Pete kissing in the car, and Boston and Raffy kissing on the lips before being interrupted. But I knew I couldn't expect that, so it didn't take me by surprise; I had already mentally prepared myself not to be disappointed and well, the story worka without that. EXCEPT for one thing: Dean and Arnold not-kiss. I feel that if they had kissed in the woods, the plot would have worked just as well. It would have made the audience feel like all the character reactions had more sense. I mean Jack ask Mew advice like if Dean did was comparable to what Top did, and it wasn't. There's a lot of things that can felt unfair from diferent perspectives bcs of that.

But putting that aside, I enjoyed the series. I liked the friend group (JDTT) dynamics and also the couples dynamics ans stories as couples. Messy toxic exes going in circles, being toxic people. I liked that nor Jack or Dean are innocent victims of each other, it was an actually well written toxic dynamic in the emotional aspect. Jack has many flaws that Dean knows perfectly well and is able to manage, and at the same time, Dean can't stop idealizing Jack and his emotional dependence, which, due to his own flaws, explosive personality, and problems, manifests in negative actions, scheming, and, well, a psychological disaster. Jack and Dean needed to grow individually in order to be together, and the series did an excellent job of establishing why by showing exactly who they are and what they are capable of when they are not self-regulated. They're not good people, but they're really great characters.

Arnold and Tua were surprisingly happy for what you'd expect in a Only Friends context, but despite that, I quite liked their dynamic with Boston. The problem is that since we don't know much about Arnold, his internal monologues were completely wasted. The whole subplot about him questioning his feelings is superficial because they don't make his conflict clear. First, it's Arnold's sexuality, then ruining the friendship, then Boston, then Arnold's feelings for Dean (again, seemingly out of nowhere) and the not-kiss. I also like that Tua isn't that perfect not-break-plate guy, I would like that mean/hypocrital side of him to be more explored, bcs it was truly interesting. I also like that Rome give himself his own value although his feelings for Raffy, It is interesting to see the plot of a self-aware crumbler who, in a way, puts logic before emotions without necessarily feeling less or being less hurt. The only thing I didn't understand was why Rome falls in love with Raffy. Raffy, whose friendship with Pete wasn't developed enough for their separation to be painful, was nonetheless a troubled character. Raffy didn't love acting, and while he wasn't bad, he wasn't the best either. His personal growth in realizing what he didn't want was very enjoyable to watch. There's nothing wrong with accepting that a character makes mistakes, by the way. Characters are not innocent babies, they had faults.

Again, the cast is amazing, the acting can save the weak parts of the script. I think they should be more brave with certain plot devices but since I also understand why they didn't do it, and the limitations, if this is what the series can offer, I take it. While it doesn't have a ton of kissing, the sex and kissing scenes are good, on-brand with what Only Friends is all about and also had an intention. For me is important that NC scenes had a why, not just being here for the sake of being here. The directing and acting are also good because P'Ninew is a good director and acting coach who did the best he could with the limitations he was given. The plot is chaotic and messy, in a different way, but it is. I truly believe it had rewatch potential.

Mi final score is 7/10.

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boring !!!

THAnk god it’s over, when I start watching something I need to finish it, I never drop any series even if it’s bad. And I never write any reviews, but after this, I had to.
I’m sorry but that was horrible. ONE OF THE worst BLs I’ve watched. Not the worst. !
When I saw the pilot I was excited, bcs I liked the first show, so i had very high expectations, too high….I haven’t read the novel but does the plot really look like this? Really I don’t get the plot, they act like someone was killed, they didn’t even cheat on each other. While watching this, in my mind was only “It’s not that deep bro 🤡” boring, boring and boring. Seriously, what a big downfall compared to the first show.
Forgetting the plot, their acting was mid 🫠
The only good thing was the intro/music and Aou carried this show. Boom was good too.
I haven’t watched any series with this cast, but I heard a lot about them (bcs they are popular ships, right?) so that was my first series with them and yeah, guys remember, popularity≠quality.
And what was that ending even supposed to mean? Season 3? Hell nahhh, better not. Don’t do it 🙏🏻 Actually, it’s not even about the acting, but the plot was SO boring, 0️⃣🧪.

Not the best, not good, not mid but not the worst 👍🏻

(Ofc, it’s only my opinion, I’ve read many reviews from other people about this show and others as well. I keep an open mind about every drama and other people’s opinions bcs I like it. You know, so many people, so many minds.) OH and I’m sorry for my English but it’s not my first language…😌🫶🏻

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What happened???

I don't know if it was the wait for this or the fact that I rewatched the first one a week before I started this but I couldn't be more underwhelmed if I tried. Again AouBoom's chemistry saved yet another show. For Christ sake GMM can you give these 2 their own show already!!!! Mix was amazing as well and it was fun to see him doing something different but the highlights were the cameos by the first series cast. I expected this to be a beautiful chaotic mess like the first one and instead got a lame attempt at angst. I watch 90% of the last 2 episodes at 2x speed only slowing it down for AouBoom's parts. Maybe it's my fault for expecting more from a sequel when I should have know better. I'm sure if you watch this one first with no expectations it's probably pretty good but after watching the train wrecks made by Ray, Boston & Boeing this one just couldn't hold up.

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