What if??
What if you could see 4 minutes in the future, would you change things?This drama was executed so well, it viewed so many options of the what if moments. You really need to pay attention to get a grasp of what happens in this complex drama. The fight scenes were done very well.
The cinematography and visuals were great! And the music was good.
Most actors did a great job, just a few actors didn't do so good, but they were mostly the extra's.
The mains were amazing, their acting is top notch and they have amazing chemistry. The kisses and NC scenes were great!
The second couple had great chemistry and their kisses and nc scene were great too.
I highly recommend watching this great drama. ( No pun intended)
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This review may contain spoilers
The only good thing about this drama is the cast. Save yourself and go watch something else.
Can watch it no problem, but I could never give it a good ranking since the plot is lacking, there are big holes in the story, the attention is put in the wrong places. There are so many things that are straight up BS, there is lack of synergy between the main characters, character development is also lacking, there was so much room to manoeuvre with the plot and I feel like they skipped all the steps.Now explanation with some spoilers:
I think there are plenty of gaps in the plot, I also didn't like the fact that some aspects were complete and utter BS.
Did not vibe with Bogums character at the beginning since his character was being portrayed as some kind of a loser that follows the girl like a dog even though she's never been attracted to him and has been in a relationship with a different dude during that period. Some of the things were just ridiculous, his best friend/brother is missing then taken to prison and there wasn't a single mention about it for 2 episodes, also there is no reaction from him as if he didn't care. The same thing goes for the mother like WTF. Then suddenly after 2 episodes they simply mention that he took his own life while in prison.
Another thing that absolutely baffles me is that the whole action continues and Bogums character doesn't seek revenge, not even for even a second is his character bothered about the incidents.
Guy basically killed his brother and tried to kill his 2nd mother but there is no reaction.
I also didn't like the chemistry between the main leads, there was literally zero chemistry.
Another thing from the top of my head, they literally show him almost dying, they put him in hospital cause he lost his vision and his face is a total wreck, swollen and purple like a grape but then the next day he goes to meet his GF and his face is like he is about to hit the runway.
These are only couple of things that bothered me the F out but there are plenty more that just made it an "aight" drama for me. I have seen about 60 dramas that are better so yeah. I am not saying it's bad or terrible but it's an "okay/aight" drama imo.
There is definitely way too much BS for me.
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Ticket to Perfect!
Surprisingly, I was quite moved by this series and its intense story. Despite its flaws, it remains for me one of the best Thai dramas to come along in a very long time. It is a rather markedly dimensional cogitation of two boys who fell in love in an all-boys Catholic high school that centrally prepares them for becoming priests. The drawback of this series is the panoptic way the story is told and subsequently pieced together. It really is choppy and needed some serious rework to make the story flow better, especially between the episodes as its time references seemed to not transition well, coherently, or smoothly. The story even between frames at times did feel a bit disjointed. In addition, the saga itself introduced almost every type of human calamity to pull at the heartstrings. It nearly overwhelmed one’s emotional senses with despair and distraught. It honestly did not need to go that deep to solicit sentiments. That was accomplished by the exceptionally fine acting by the two protagonists. Nevertheless, none of these flaws diminished in any way from the power of this story. And what was the power of this story? Love. My full review of this poignant story is at BLBliss.com.Was this review helpful to you?
PEAK!.
I already gave it a 10 when i finsihed the first 4 eps and now that I have finished all of it, a "10" dosen't do it justice. It's a "♾️" typa show.Loved the plot and the pure love they had for eachother.
1. The CINEMATOGRAPHY? Absolutely FANTASTIC.
2. The ACTING? Great and LEGENDARY.
3. The PLOT? A complete MASTERPIECE.
The premise, the ending, the meaning behind the show, and the characters themselves everything was perfect.
I miss them♾️.
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This review may contain spoilers
At least he can sing beautifully...
Another chinese BL, another more or less 08/15 story. The tropé from childhood best friend, the felt betrayal of his best friend to lover... And of course a love-triangle where the now best friend has to accept that he isn't the choosen one.The only outstanding feature is the singing voice... omg it's so so so so nice. But just singing is not bringing this series to life. While the chemistry was good, the performance was just ok and depending on the scene sometimes good. But not really good or stellar. The plot was quite cliché in a bad way, with the typical bad boys bully a innocent orphan boy who suffers from it tremendously.
Production quality was very well done, even the kissing was nice, but I did not really feel involved. It's good that we had not to wait for a week per episode. On the other hand the theme song was repeated all over the place were another song or just another arrangement of the song would have been so much better. Subtitles struggled with him/her, so it seems it was not corrected by someone who can speak english well.
This was an "ok" show. It's not bad, it's not good, bonus points for his singing voice. If you have nothing to do or not know what to watch it's not the worst choice you could have.
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This review may contain spoilers
movie-speed pacing
I love dancing-in-your-seat cheering for heroines and heroes.I love bold cinematography and interesting choices.
I love an actual moral struggle over resentment.
I love a serious intellectual and moral struggle over trying to change the future.
There are so many excellent and positive reviews here on MDL. Read them. But...
My two cents:
Chen Du ling plays a flawed, selfish, obsessed revengeful, filial heroine in her usual no-holds-barred style.
BUT the script has her confront her bloody-minded self in some psychological space on a huge game board every once in a while. It gives the show some real gravitas, because it IS really hard to control the effect your choices will have in the future.
Zhou Yi Ran is so devoted and so patient. He somehow slowly absorbs most of her crazed anger as her lover, her bodyguard and her general. What a man he is in this role.
We cannot keep grinding down each show until they all look the same with our endless criticisms of plot and pace. This has the pace of a good action movie with some gorgeous blotches of color, memory, flashbacks and a good grisly murder or two BY THE HEROINE, up close and personal. It is not like other shows so appreciate that.
It is original. unusual, thought-provoking and sexy in all ways.
ps.
Why did I score it down on acting? The older actors are completely brilliant and the two leads are great. There is something inconsistent about the antagonists. It is probably not skill-sets but just a missing piece in their portrayals.
The script is very good on dialogue, but I think the 'forest of men' concept made a hash of the three antagonists. They each slowly and patiently make a try for the throne, they have wonderful scary lines in long conversations over tea. Very cool. But somebody needed to work with them on differentiating their characterizations more.
The pace was fast, so anything would have helped, some personal favorite item or anything which would consistently introduce them in the central scenes. The color-coding was a good idea but useful mainly in scene-settings.
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MUST watch
Damn, KBL is really on top right now, huh? This series has completely exceeded my expectations, and every episode just keeps getting better. The chemistry between the main couple is absolutely incredible, making every scene feel so natural and emotional. It’s one of those dramas that easily pulls you in, leaving you excited for what happens next. Even though the series is still ongoing, I’m already counting down the days until Episode 5 because I seriously cannot wait to see how the story unfolds.One of the things I love most about KBL is how it keeps viewers emotionally invested. Every episode leaves me wanting more, and the cliffhangers make the wait feel even longer. The acting, storytelling, and overall production are so well done that it’s hard not to get attached to the characters. The main couple deserves all the love they’re getting because they truly bring their roles to life. Their chemistry feels genuine, and it’s one of the biggest reasons why this series has become such a favorite for so many fans.
I’m already manifesting that the production team gives us another series with the exact same main couple after this one ends. They have so much potential, and it would honestly be a waste if this were their only project together. I know I’m not the only one hoping for more because they’ve created something really special that fans would definitely support again.
Also, can we please talk about the episode lengths? They’re way too short! I wish each episode were much longer because I never want them to end. Just when things start getting really exciting, the credits roll, and I’m left waiting another week. Hopefully, future episodes are longer because I could honestly watch these two for hours. KBL is definitely one of the best ongoing series right now, and I’m so excited to see what’s coming next!
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As Episode 1 Ended, I Asked Myself “What Did I Just Watch?”
This is an unbelievable piece of….nonsensical BL. It’s a waste of time.First, the audio quality sucked so badly. It was terrible all through.
Now, the story??? What is the story???
The synopsis written here sells the show too well, you would think it’s worth watching. News Flash: It’s not.
I’m trying to think of one thing I enjoyed while watching this… Oh, I’m done thinking and the answer is still nothing.
The acting too is so mediocre, which is weird because KBLs rarely have mediocre acting. But it is what it is I guess.
Now, to the NC scenes? The episode would have been better off without them. Completely threw me off.
And I hope they don’t think that ending is suspenseful enough to keep viewers watching? Lmfaooo, cos I’m dropping this.
I had a bad feeling before starting it, I just knew it would be below par, and it is.
Don’t even bother watching. I already did, so you don’t have to.
You’re welcome.
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The Ride Is Worth It. The Destination Isn't.
The Art of Negotiation is the kind of show you cannot stop once you start an episode. It is built around cases, each one a self-contained negotiation that the team picks up, works through, and resolves. A construction unit fighting to survive a corporate restructuring. A stock collapse that pulls the team to Japan and slowly unravels a hidden connection between two companies. A failed negotiation Joo-no has to salvage after a teammate's mistake. Each case has a human story underneath the corporate one, and that is what keeps you glued.Running underneath every case is the larger mystery of Joo-no: who he is, where he came from, what shaped him. This is supposed to be the destination the cases are all driving toward. But Joo-no's story is barely threaded through the series and then suddenly crowded into the final episodes, and when it finally arrives, it feels like a first run-through rather than a payoff. There is no particular buildup, no accumulated weight. The show introduces his backstory in the finale the way it should have been slowly earning it from episode one. After twelve episodes of cases that kept you genuinely guessing, the main story lands with a flatness that the show never quite recovers from.
Choi Jin-su is a separate frustration. Throughout the series, the writer plants consistent signals around him — a quietly wealthy air, hints of a past connection to Joo-no that accumulate into the strong impression that he is hiding something significant. He keeps you watching, keeps you guessing. And then nothing comes of it. The signals lead nowhere, and the interest collapses once you realise the answer is never coming.
The Art of Negotiation is a genuinely exciting watch that does not fully stick the landing. The craft is clearly there; the cases are well constructed, the tension is real, and the show respects your intelligence throughout. It just spent more time building the world around Joo-no than building Joo-no himself. Watch it for the ride. Just do not expect the destination to match it.
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A Drama Ruined by an Insufferable Female Lead
This drama is incredibly frustrating to watch. The female lead is annoying, irrational, and constantly jumps to the worst possible conclusions. She assumes the Crown Prince is some evil villain simply because he keeps interfering with her plans. Instead of paying attention to his actions, she convinces herself he's trying to kill her, even though there is little evidence to support it.What's even more frustrating is that she's the one hiding her identity and keeping secrets, yet she continues acting as if he's the untrustworthy one. She's completely oblivious to his obvious affection and good intentions, making the same ridiculous assumptions over and over again.
The drama is only 26 episodes long, and by Episode 16 she hasn't shown any meaningful character growth. She's exactly the same as she was in Episode 1—stubborn, clueless, and making the same poor decisions. At this point, it's no longer entertaining; it's just repetitive and exhausting to watch.
I really wanted to like this drama, but the lack of character development and the female lead's constant irrational behavior made it hard to stay invested.
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Zhou Keyu - Yearner God
This series completely wrecked me. I spent a day and a night binge watching and have been mourning not being with these characters anymore. The OST is outstanding and very playable, I have already rewatched several episodes a few times, and I can't stop thinking about the story overall.The breakup arc is extremely frustrating but extremely understandable as well. I felt as if my own heart was broken several times over. Both leads are superb and fully immersed in their characters.
Zhou Keyu especially stole my heart though. To say RAW emotion is an understatement. Give that man all the awards and all the yearner roles 💜🫣💜
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Souce of dopamine for me ✨
I only chanced upon this gem two years after it's premiere and now I'm like "why didn't I watch this sooner?". It is such a heart-warming romance about two childhood friends but it also showed glimpses of life events and importance of loved ones' support.I love everything about this drama: the butterflies from the romance, realistic banter between the cast, cute second couple, friendship between the mothers and awesome editing especially the brilliant subtle change of title at the end of each episode. Awesome acting by the leads too.
There are only a few dramas that I want to rewatch even before it's finished, and this is one of them.
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This review may contain spoilers
Reality of War and Resistance
Zhang Xuan plays a scumbag so well and so often that it was hard to see him in a ""nice guy"" tsundere role. I think one of my favorite things about this drama was the outfits (and I tend to not enjoy this time period so that is saying a lot) and the fact that they didnt drag out the plot unnecessarily. It moved and they closed up the story nicely. Was it sad both her parents died for the resistance? Yes, but that is part of war. Her continuing on her parents legacy honored them.Was this review helpful to you?
Heavy on Politics but Excellent Lead Chemistry & Character Growth
At first, I thought this series would be a revenge + romance story, but let me warn you upfront it focuses much more on politics than romance. If you don’t like political intrigue and characters talking at length for many scenes, then this drama is definitely not for you.The series starts off very interestingly. It keeps you guessing who the real villain is, though honestly, you can pretty much tell that almost everyone is shady lol. The middle part is extremely intense — everyone starts scheming against each other. They act like allies but are always ready to stab each other in the back. In the latter half, the pacing and editing become quite rushed, making the story feel hurried. This drama really needed more episodes to properly develop the plot and characters. If it had more time, it would have been perfect. The female lead is a very smart character. Although there are moments where her decisions feel off or not that clever, you can clearly see her growth. The male lead has the most obvious and satisfying character development — starting from having nothing and gradually rising to become someone truly formidable. Almost all the main characters are sharp and quick-witted, matching each other’s level. The soundtrack is also really good. The chemistry between Chen Duling and Zhou Yiran is excellent and is honestly one of the biggest highlights of the show. Just them looking into each other’s eyes is enough to make you melt.
Overall, If you’re a fan of the leads, I highly recommend it. Chen Duling looks stunning in every outfit, and Zhou Yiran is incredibly handsome and charismatic. Their chemistry together is fantastic. That said, as I mentioned, this drama is heavily political rather than romantic. If you don’t enjoy political intrigue at all, you might end up disappointed. But for me, the strengths far outweigh the flaws.
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Heart Code , one of the GL series that worth to rewatch again
I like the main leads; their acting was good and have a great chemistry too.The storyline was one of the plus points, not every GL action/criminal series was this good and not every GL couple dare to act in this genre too.
so, good job for the main leads!
looking forward to seeing another upcoming series.
Give me them more exposure, please!!!
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