Reviews

Sorry but no.

This is my second time trying to watch this and really get into it, but it's literally just so terrible to me. The actors are like a 7/10 at acting so it feels mediocre, but the storyline is literally just so boring to me. I'd rather watch (I think his name is Gao tu). The main story is just so boring and the editing is pretty bad to me also. I was really excited for an omega verse but I can't lie this heavily disappointed me. I think the main reason it's so boring to me is because it literally just constantly talks about work and business and I hate the type of stories that focus more on all the data and graphics. It feels like I'm in school just trying to learn/keep up with the story. So respectfully this is a full no for me. Maybe if someone told me what the hell is going on I'd enjoy it better. I literally got lost in ep1 and ever since then it led me no where. Hopefully another time I'll be ready to give it a 3rd time, but right now ima rewatch revenged love lol.

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Love and Law

I heard so much positive feedback about this drama that made me watch it. Each episode is packed with cases that are quite difficult to handle, yet the Litigation team have handled them with much hard work and teamwork. As we see the ending, I anticipate a Season 2 for this - how will the restructed Yullim look like and what will happen for the rest of the corrupt ones.
What made me continue to watch is to see how the story of Seok Hoon and Hyo-min unfold, why they think that way and their interaction with one another.
I see why the title is Beyond the Bar - because it challenged their moral and ethical principles as well as how they view life in general. It shows humanity, mercy and love even in the hardest of cases they faced. There is compassion even when the sentence was pronounced.
The Actors
Lee Jin-Wook's demeanor is just right for the role of no-nonsense mentor. However, we also see a soft side of the character as he listens to the reasonings of his juniors and perhaps really a good reader of people. We see him transitioned for being 'all work' to enjoying his team, not just giving advise but also receiving.
I saw Jung Chae-Yeon in Family by Choice, and she looks so young there when in fact it was just last year. Here, she portrays a much older character, a genius, yet had some issues which only unfolded as the series progressed. Hyo-min is a breath of fresh air for the team and much more for Seok-Yoon who seem to be so stiff - as his teammates say their team is dry.
It is also good to see side stories of the other lawyers, both the good and the bad and how we all desire the good to win.
The 2nd lead lawyers' story added to the dynamics of love and law. In the end, love wins.
Should I rewatch it?
Perhaps after 6 months, when my brain cells can keep up with the terminologies... just kidding.
Overall, I rate this an 8.5, and wish that the Lead's story will continue to Season 2? Please season 2 soon.

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2 This is painful.

My main issue is that the characters where all horrible. Terrible. No one was likeable and they acted like adults stunted emotionally. The lead was supposed to be "innocent" and she was just dumb. The male lead was supposed to be aloof and I think he just ended up being immature and terrible. The second leads where even worse. The second lead was so terrible I was actually have a physical reaction to him.

There were some very humorous moments, but I just never cared for any of the characters. I felt like a lot of the cuter things just ended up being painful to watch. The music wasn't memorable, the story felt like it had potential, and the acting felt off.

This is one I can live with out.

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add this to the very short list of mature thai gl couples

i’ve been on a thai gl run lately, and us the series was such a standout. the storyline was engaging without being overly dramatic, and i have to highlight the acting — pam, rak, rak’s mother, and especially kawi absolutely killed their roles.

the pacing? best i’ve seen in a thai gl so far. the slow burn was worth every second. the chemistry between the leads was immaculate — every sweet scene had me grinning ear to ear. i loved that the show focused on tender, meaningful moments instead of just rushing into love scenes. both leads felt like real adults in a healthy relationship: no breakup/makeup cycle, no jumping to conclusions, just two people communicating and facing hardships together.

the side characters made it feel like we were slowly building a family, and i appreciated that the finale didn’t go the “forgiving father” route. gmmtv’s production quality was flawless as always — the visuals, ost, and cinematography were all stunning.

my favorite part was the message: family isn’t about blood, it’s about the people you choose. the chosen family theme was so beautifully done. my critiques are small but important — i wish there was more clarity around the timeline (like how long pam & kawi dated, how long after did rak & pam get together, kawi’s healing, etc.), and i would’ve loved more focus on oat & nene. their dynamic had so much potential, but after the time skip it felt like we barely scratched the surface.

overall, us the series was heartfelt, beautifully acted, and refreshing in how it handled adult relationships. 8/10.

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Jealous of The Ones Who Haven't Seen This Yet

Beyond the Bar exceeded my expectations. As simple as that. I'm not a close minded person, yes, the ending did made me sad a bit but I won't base everything solely on that. This drama made me love the legal genre more. From the interesting cases, to the OST, the character's development, their bond, all of it was majestically portrayed. If you're a logical person, you will love this drama. The little slow burn romance was cute, I expected more but it doesn't matter since I'm still hopeful for a second season. All in all, this series is worth to watch, and will definitely make your time worth the while.

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Suddenly I’m a fan of Dylan Wang!

I’m usually not a big fan of dramedies since I often struggle to catch their rhythm, but Guardians of Dafeng completely won me over. Dylan Wang was perfect for his role—his performance was not only beautifully acted but also full of charm. He made me laugh, get excited, and even feel sad, blending emotions seamlessly.

What really impressed me was the comedic timing. Too often in Chinese dramas, humor feels forced or added just for the sake of being funny. Here, it felt natural and well-placed—funny when it needed to be, without breaking the flow of the story.

Of course, it isn’t flawless. With so many characters, there simply wasn’t enough time to fully develop them. The current limit of 40 episodes also meant the ending felt rushed, condensed into a short narrative. Ironically, I used to dislike the very long Chinese dramas, but once I got used to how they take time to expand characters, I now sometimes find Korean dramas with only 12–16 episodes lacking.

That said, the CGI was top-notch, and the overall production quality was amazing. The ending left me hanging with a sense of unfinished business, but I also appreciated the hopeful, positive note it closed on. Clearly, the door was left open for a Season 2—and I’ll be eagerly waiting for it.

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Best Legal Drama of 2025

A total surprise for sure! I am selective when it comes to this genre because I crave perfection for it. I didn't expect to love this drama as much. The overall effect of this drama on me is unbelievable. I've never felt this way about a series before. It's totally one of a kind. The stories and cases were very inspiring and educational.—the chemistry between the leads areso magnetic and alluring. I know a lot of us are disappointed with the ending, but we can all agree that this drama kept us on our seats and made us really giddy with the slow-burning romance. I am hoping for a Season 2 myself, and I won't lose hope. I know they won't waste such chemistry just like that.

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Dudu & His 3 Personalities were EVERYTHING

Is our Dudu collecting generals again? Yes and no, considering one of his personalities was one himself. 😉 CL has been on a roll this year with his dramas. This one by far the most versatile. His leading lady wasn't too shabby either. They played off each other very well. Hard to have a man with three personalities who were all equally sexy in their own way.

Pros: Deciding which personality to choose is very hard, though at first the vampire with LYN's OST was awesome but ultimately when all three combined into one, that was the best and the fact that how they all complimented each other and you could tell when each one peeked out a little bit. I have to command CL on doing such a wonderful job. This really makes him a versatile actor to be able to play essentially an immortal, a cold ruthless general, and a guy who has amnesia and a puppy dog in love. SML did a pretty good job too from playing someone supposedly innocent to really showing his true colors and then turning into a narcissist sociopath that's obsessed with the FL and won't let go before reality hit him hard that now as emperor he had a whole country to rule not just force a woman who didn't love him to be his empress. The dichotomy of it all was interesting to watch.

Essentially the story is as it's told in the synopsis, ML who had like 5 names so I'll just stick to ML for him, is a general from the state opposing the FL's or LS's so there's constant wars where the common people suffer. He goes out to save his bro the emperor but is tricked by the brainless wannabe empress and the evil reject with black magic essentially losing the fight and gets turned into a vampire but escapes. He needs to drink blood in order to survive and because he escapes and somehow reverts to a child, he falls down a cliff where FL just happens to be fighting his soldiers; her blood ends up on a plant and somehow drips into his mouth and from that moment on they have a blood oath where it's only her blood and he must protect her and only her. His time as a kid was cute but he becomes an adult again very quickly as her scent strengthens him. So they spend the better half of the series falling in love and doing some silly things. Meanwhile in his country; it's chaotic as the fraud with black magic essentially bound the emperor to her and chained him up for what lasted a year. She faked the deaths of the emperor and his brother the ML and stuck her toddler son on the throne appointing herself his regent or fake empress.

Back at the border there are other characters that were important like the doctor friend or LX of LS, MY who was from the mountain that vampire making artifact came from also a doctor, a few fun generals one with a crush on LS who thankfully never went for it. Other great characters were LS' brother, though spoiled at first, grew up through the help of ML and LS, her father was a good man. The emperor bro of ML, the two subordinates of ML. Also the girls in LS' mansion especially Qiao whom we lost but she will always be remembered especially by the man who came to love her. What I really loved about LS was that she gave people second chances who she didn't think were evil like the bandits because they only did what they did because of their circumstances.

The SML or CP/emperor was a narcissistic sociopath. Obviously, starting with the trauma of what his brother did to him and then everything else after a while it’s all about him does not matter who gets hurt or how as long as his bacon is out of the fire he don’t care. An example is the rage killing of his brother, the rock, and then the multiple stab wounds. Than with LS, whom he claimed to love all his life; there's no love behind that none whatsoever it’s possession, obsession and she is the trophy that he must have. The fact that he was never crippled in the first place and literally hid it from everyone, including the woman he supposedly loved was a massive red flag. She only learns this much later when he again forces the whole marriage thing once he becomes emperor. How do you do that at such a young age to be able to hide such a secret from absolutely everyone? BWJ absolutely played that portion of his character to the hilt. Also, the fact that he literally betrayed her, betrayed the ML just to get what he wanted, but ended up being betrayed himself. He trusted the evil reject after meeting him only once which was ridiculous.

We then had the other arc where evil reject removes the jade artifact from ML through force, but he was the only one to do it because originally he'd put it in him using dark magic so he had to use dark magic to take it out. Once that was taken out of him, the ML started to forget what had happened to him the entire year and start to remember his actual life. So we had the arc of him remembering, forgetting her forgetting everything; It obviously wasn't the case once he comes back to his country fake empress is very afraid of him, but she still doesn't give up power. LS fights ML gets captured tortured a little bit, but then he saves her and puts her in a safe house. Long story short he eventually remembers with the help of the second couple (who also rescued the emperor who retakes his throne) and the sociopath gets a redemption arc, that country had no other ruler so they had to make him understand that he couldn't just be tunnel obsessed with her. He had a whole country to run, and he was good at it so while unfortunately, her father died; all of SMY's hypocritical ministers wanted her dead, he faked her death to draw out ML because he finally realized ML loved her more then him and he admitted defeat plus he he admitted he couldn't love her alone, he had the country and the people to run and now they had peace as the real emperor from the other state was restored to the throne.

Leads ran off together; every character was exited out appropriately at the end. The last episode was great. I loved it and especially when we got a chance to listen to LYN OST as our ML vampire crazy train took out half of SMY's team who were fake burying LS. But that ending was great with him and her and just literally exiting everybody out; the second couple talking about marriage, the leads talk about having a kid and the final kiss. Meanwhile, everyone thought she was dead, but she gave some pastries to her brother, so her brother knew she was alive, but he had joined her army and everyone was just basically doing their thing. The fake fraud was captured, but they couldn't kill her because she had done the Black voodoo on the emperor so if she died, he would die so they just stuck her in a cage, I loved the final message that LS gave her that you used all those dirty tricks to get someone to love you who never loved you; that nobody ever loved you because of how disgusting you are and how vile.

Honestly, the only real villain that I saw that played the villain part to the hilt was SML's brother. There was something mentally wrong with him. None of these apples fall far from the tree, but SMY ended up, turning his brain around and understanding facts later on. Costumes, locations, CGI, OST's all of that was on point especially LYN's OST that was really on point. I have to say my favorite scene was of ML and LS fighting troops in the forest and she tells him that she wants to kill someone so he puts his arm to the side. She jumps on it and they just hold still for maybe a second and a half and it is the most editorial and beautiful shot with him in his vampire outfit, mask, eyes everything and she in her red and black with the cool bow and arrow, and then he catapults her into the air. It's phenomenal like that shot was my absolute favorite.

Cons: OK let's start with fake empress and evil reject like those two yes, they were part of the story, but they absolute overdid it for her and the cackling and those fake long golden nails or whatever she wore and her facial expressions and she did not carry any power whatsoever no matter what she did even when it was sadistic and cruel it just looked stupid and overdone. And the evil reject again they cast this actor to be evil; he's always been cast as a protagonist, a comedian, someone funny someone smart, but this is the 2nd time they cast him as someone evil he can't do it he just does not hit the mark and it looks really bad.

The other thing it's a small one, but someone else mentioned it in the comments, and I agree with this person, but the fact that LS literally cried in almost every scene because she happy, angry, sad, whatever the emotion was instead of actually getting angry and yelling and screaming; you are a general! Nope, she just start crying. When it was sadness, sure. However, when it's anger or some other emotion that has nothing to do with tears and that's the result, it takes the emotion out of it and it just looks wrong. I'm not blaming the actress for this. I'm sure this was all the director wanting to show, but it shouldn't have happened. When she was a general and she was fighting she was badass absolutely badass a total power couple with the vampire ML. Even when she was ML's prisoner, she spoke to him like a petulant child instead of a POW. She should've spoken to him then the way she spoke to him when he was still with her maybe that would've helped. And it showed that he started to really get his memories when he saw the sketches of the cave drawings or if in her sleep, she would say that name that she gave him when it was actually something from the past that's what made him start to question what's going on. I mean, you cannot go a whole year with missing memories and not question what the hell happened.

Would I recommend it? Yes I would; it has so many layers to uncover, especially with ML's character. His is the most complex and you really have to see how the actor does it. I think the storyline was solid and it is great for any woman who likes sexy men.

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A Hidden Masterpiece: Raw, Heartfelt, and Criminally Underrated

I rarely write reviews, but this show is so GROSSLY UNDERRATED that I feel compelled to give it the attention it deserves. First of all, the cinematography is stunning. It perfectly captures the atmosphere of the 20th century, and honestly, it felt like watching a movie stretched across 12 episodes.

What truly struck me, though, was how deeply the characters’ struggles were portrayed. The romance between the ML and FL wasn’t your typical “lovey-dovey” drama fluff—it grew naturally out of empathy for each other’s hardships, evolving into a companionship that felt genuine, profound, and unshakable. Watching their relationship develop slowly made their bond all the more powerful, and I could really feel their emotional connection.

Another highlight is how well the drama balanced all three couples’ storylines. I found myself equally invested in the side characters, like 张老师 and 茶哥 were SO CUTE! Their arcs added warmth and depth to the overall narrative.

This show captures the raw, unfiltered nature of love—both its pain and its beauty. I’ve never cried so hard watching a drama, and not just from the characters’ tragic backstories or struggles, but also from the joy of seeing them overcome adversity and stand by one another. If you’re someone who enjoys dramas that makes you cry, this one is a must-watch.

Personally I felt that the pacing was just right and I actually liked that it was only 12 episodes because each episode nicely reveals something that connects the events together. And the OSTs? Absolute perfection—each track heightened the emotions at exactly the right moments.

Honestly, it’s such a shame that this drama wasn’t promoted better. With its unique plot, breathtaking execution, and emotional depth, it could have easily been a massive hit. To me, it’s nothing short of a masterpiece.

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A masterpiece

This drama was so enjoyable and I'm not a professional reviewer so I'll keep it simple.

Shin SaeKyung was my favourite character and because of that I really hated the love story between Lee Jihoon and Hwang Jangeum and I skipped so many of their parts and nearly dropped the drama, the only reason I didn't stop watching was because of Jung Junhyuk and the miniscule hope that maybe Jihoon would realize Saekyung's feelings and reciprocate or help her move on to Junhyuk.

When I lost all hope the ending scene saved me, I know it's sad that they died but their conversation warmed my heart and I finally felt how beautiful love can be even when it isn't complete. I rooted for Saekyung so bad the whole time that I lowkey liked how time really did stop for her and Jihoon. Also, I WANT to believe Jihoon returned her feelings and that was the reason he had tears in his eyes, if there was any guilt it was the guilt of not realising his feelings sooner and chasing after the wrong girl.
So even if the ending is sad, it's the reason I gave this drama a 10, without this ending I would've given the drama a 7.5.

Another beautiful thing about the drama is the friendship between Shin Shinae and Jung Hyeri. Jung Hyeri was such an annoying kid with a good heart.

The episodes may feel long and you might not like all the parts (I hated Hwang Jangeum scenes so much, only Junhyuk made her scenes tolerable for me) but the drama has a beautiful story.

The director of #HighKick2 is not wrong at all, JiSe was sprinkled through the entire drama but most gp don't understand the subtle nuances of subconscious actions and that is why JiJung was more popular.

JiHoon didn't even know his own feelings but finding out SaeKyung might be moving abroad wavered him and then little by little he felt like he was losing something and so he became more desperate to reconcile with JungEum thinking her absence was what was causing all this emptiness but really he became more desperate for her only after SaeKyung decided to really leave so on the day SaeKyung is leaving he buys a wedding ring to propose to JungEum (because he feels like his heart is losing but since he doesn't know what he convinces himself it's JungEum) but reading SaeKyung's note he rushed to catch her (he was a little out of breath when he managed to catch SaeKyung at the hospital exit) and decides to drop her off at the airport first (note that even in this moment he is not sure about his feelings for SaeKyung but he knows he doesn't want to leave her yet). Only after SaeKyung finally reveals his feelings, he cries because he realized he loves her too but nothing is simple anymore for them.

This drama is really a masterpiece and everyone who worked in it played their parts well. It's only because people can't fathom how a person might be perfectly happy with a person but still have so much love for another person that the message is not received well and people blame direction, writing etc etc but truth is nothing is wrong with the story or direction, it served its purpose very well.

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Great characters, fun and refreshing story

LOTFG is the best C drama I’ve seen in awhile. For the last year, I have probably been fast forwarding through every drama I’ve watched or at least fast forwarding through the angst arc. I just haven’t had the patience for the typical C drama formula.

However, I love Zhou Ye and I like Ryan Cheng in FoF, so I figured I’d give this a chance, and it did not disappoint. The story itself is a bit cliche, but the way it was executed really made this a joy to watch. There is never any dumb misunderstanding, the one or two “fights” they had are barely fights as this is a healthy relationship where they know and understand each other deep down. He Yan constantly flirting with Xiao Jue is fun to watch, and his more quiet and serious love for her is also a fun contrast. The side characters are all fun as well.

To me, this felt more like slice of life in a historical drama. I felt like they were friends that I wanted to tell me about their story, and I was never irritated during any drawn out angst arc. I know the last couple episodes got criticism, but even those, I just enjoyed watching them be a couple and show us all how much they loved each other.

I miss these characters a lot, and I would love a season 2 or modern drama with the main leads! I’m about to rewatch now actually but wanted to come here and express my appreciation of this good story with great characters before starting again.

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Every emotion you can feel is in this drama

This is an absolute rollercoaster ride of different emotions. Starting out happy and innocent to sad and extremely depressing, all within a matter of two episodes. Not knowing what the title "366 Days" really means when you start watching, you just need to stay focused and just keep watching.
Gordon Maeda, who I'm a long time fan of, gives a fantastic performance, playing really two roles, Haruto before the accident and Haruto after the accident. Alice Hirose is also brilliant at showing the difficulties when dealing with a catastrophic event in one's family or relationship. The two of them match perfectly together to make for a very believable story, giving you several tear-jerking moments.
The supporting cast is great, showing the importance of friendship, and how "best friends" are always there for you, in good times and in bad.
I must admit, I started having a change of heart toward this series around episode 7, not liking the direction is was going at all, almost to a point of not wanting to watch the final three or so episodes ... BUT I'm so glad I stuck with it. If you're watching it and feel an annoyance to even anger come over you later in the series, stick it out, you'll be glad you did. The final episode definitely makes it all worth your while!!!
A line given early on in this series definitely makes total sense at the end, "No one knows what the future will bring. You have to work today, for the sake of tomorrow"

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Farm/tree/seachange for everyone!

There are times when only a slow burn, mellow romance will hit the spot. This show fits the bill, but it also has a minor sting in its tail. We'll talk about that later.

The first couple of episodes is manic. Two already hectic urban lives are upended by life threatening illness as well as career setbacks. A double whammy you wouldn't wish on your worst enemy. I can sense the "how low can it go" trope rearing its head already.

The daughter (YFL) finally had enough and ran away with her bestie to the sea. There she meets a handsome, helpful young man (YML) and his handsome, helpful father (OML). As luck would have it, the OML went to school with her adopted mother (OFL). There was definitely some entanglement back then.

One thing leads to another. Before we can say Tteokbokki, our female leads up sticks and moved to the small town where the male leads live. They made new friends and reconnected with old ones. They build a home and made a fresh start. Everything is going swimmingly except for the shadow of the YFL's illness.

As you'd expect, romance is definitely in the air. While there are two SFL's. They don't pose much of a threat.

The greater challenge lies in our leads sorting out their feelings and acting upon them. As per usual, this is quite a long and tortuous path. We got there in the end and everyone is happy until it is time for the YFL's operation. So much introspection and tears.

Now the sting I mentioned earlier. It is not really anything nasty but the show is unabashedly sentimental towards the end. Every trope related to relationships, found family, healing and growth are there. You might find it wholesome and sweet . . or not. I won't judge. ;)

However, the time skip in the end feels a little pointless. I see the need for the FL to heal, but it also implies nothing happen to everyone around her during the lengthy skip. Then everything rush ahead once the stasis is over. It feels quite arbitrary.

In the end, it is a pleasant watch. Several romances blossomed. The acting is good from the ensemble cast. Dr. Jung is a gem. Production value is on par. Ditto the OST. It might be too mellow and sentimental for some. Caveat emptor, chingu.

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The story were great...the cast were remarkable but

This is my humble and personal opinion. ..

The drama pulled me in so strongly that I binged it in just three days, sneaking in episodes whenever I had free time. The storyline is engaging, with a well-woven mix of political intrigue, power struggles, and emotional conflicts. The leads are definitely on point — their acting is solid, and the chemistry works well enough to carry the plot.

That said, I found myself missing the extra spark that makes a drama unforgettable. The swoonworthy moments are there, but not strong enough to make me want to rewatch. The male lead is complex and layered, but not quite loveable enough to sweep me off my feet. On the other hand, the antagonist, while mean, wasn’t menacing enough to be truly hateable. It left me feeling in-between — impressed, but not emotionally wrecked the way other dramas have managed.

Overall, it’s still a really great watch with a strong story and well-done performances. Just not one of those “rewatch again and again” kind of dramas. Would I recommend it? Yes — especially if you enjoy political plots with layered characters. But if you’re looking for that intense swoon factor and unforgettable villain you’ll love to hate, this one may feel a bit lighter than expected.

And lastly — Zhou Ye was dazzlingly pretty and irresistibly cute, but Ryan Cheng absolutely stole the spotlight for me. So manly, so handsome, and that whispering voice… arghhh, I’m in love. 😍 If only there were more lovey-dovey scenes, I’d easily give this a 10-star rating.

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