Reviews

Don’t let the first few episodes stop you from watching this drama na~

Yes, it starts off slow and the POOR DIRECTING might make you want to drop it (all those endless close-ups, long stares, random pauses, acting like a child…) But trust me, the plot from the middle episodes onwards gets good! The last two episodes especially are full of surprises — and that unexpected plot twist had me stunned too. Who would’ve thought! 55555

The acting is still a work in progress, but overall it’s okay. The emotions do come through — especially from PerKan <3 They’re so cute together!! You can really feel their pain, heartache, and happiness. Always thinking of each other, even when someone tries to ruin it… *cough*Khun Mae*cough*

Knight & Mild also had their own struggles, but they pulled through. Their love story is sweet and detailed (though maybe a little too long if you ask me)

Now I’m just waiting for the grand finale~

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Gets a little interesting towards the end but a wasted potential

As a huge BossNeoul fan I feel a little frustrated because they honestly deserved better. The acting was perfection, saved the drama.
The plot had really great potential to develop into one of the best dramas of the year but the abrupt ending and the lack of flow made it unenjoyable. They had a great idea but none sat to develop it so it ended up having too many plot holes and no depth. What saddens me the most is it had potentials.

The acting is phenomenal and we can truly see how much Booss and Neoul has grown since LITA. They embraced the characters well and showed apt emotions in each scene. They truly gave life to the characters. They truly deserve some better storylines.

The sorection was good. It felt really high maintained and well drafted. Even with the lack of plot the cinematography and direction gave it atleast some dimension.

I hope to see more of such plot but with better quality.

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Humanistic portrayal of the complexity of relationships

It’s customary for me to begin my reviews with “Where do I start?” but this series is quite long and is character driven so it seems more fitting now than ever to ask, how the hell do I unpack this?

First off, You and everything else, is a series where we explore all the fluctuations in the friendship between Ryu Eun Jung and Cheon Sang Yeon as they go through 4 different stages of life: Their childhood, college days, post grad/adulthood days and finally, the present day.

My favourite part of the series is their middle school to high school era. It captures the essence of who both characters are by showcasing their family dynamics, the worries that occupy their minds, the pressures they face, the things they love… The show did one of the best character development set ups I have ever seen.

Also, the acting, especially from young Ryu Eun Jung, had me absolutely floored. It’s some of the best acting I’ve seen this year, point blank! I mean, the nuance she brought to the character, the micro expressions, the mannerisms that brought life to Ryu Eun Jung… These are things that create a serious bond between the audience and the character.

This is what makes us care about Eun Jung. About her hopes, about her getting the boy, about her doing well in school. The way people are depicted through her point of view is also immensely endearing. Ms. Yoon, for example, because of Eun Jung, it’s kind of impossible not to love her. And then Cheon Sang Hak comes along and it’s impossible not to love him either.

This is where I find the writing phenomenal because during the very short span that we get to be with Sang Hak, we are as enamored by him as Ryu Eun Jung is. And when we learn of his death, we experience the sadness, we experience the shock, we understand how and why everything else in the story revolves so much around this sole event.

When the girls grow older, however, I find that the acting quality (though still incredibly polished) diminishes. I love Kim Go Eun but I do find that she almost always just acts as herself. I did have to take a point off for that.

Park Ji Hyun on the other hand surprised me. I wasn’t expecting much from her, but she carried the show on her back! The nuance I was talking about initially, and the emotion, oh boy the emotion. The times when she’s third wheeling Eun Jung and Sang Hak, the sort of pull you know she has towards Sang Hak, and then the retreating when she realises that he is not hers to have. Ugh. I love it!

The writing for me starts getting wonky when we’re introduced to the arc where Sang Yeon is looking for answers concerning her brother’s death. I don’t think that was done as tastefully as other aspects of the series BUT since this is a character driven story, I understand that we needed something to unravel Sang Yeon.

I also think that (Kim) Sang Hak’s sort of shift towards the end of their college days has me side-eyeing the writer because it’s not particularly believable to me. Not because Sang Hak is a saint, but because he is someone who has a clear set of principles. Someone with principles like him wouldn’t just say “My heart was swayed.” He is someone who is level-headed, thinks things through and cares a lot. So for him to have acted as he did has me feeling like there is some inconsistency somewhere in the writing.

One thing that I really like about this whole thing is the humanistic take on Eun Jung and Sang Yeon’s relationship and how it evolves. The toxicity of their relationship feels familiar. Like you might see in your family, with your own friends, or in stories you've heard from others. It’s red flags that don’t seem so red at first.

Not until you become more mature and realize you allowed people to walk all over you. It’s the depiction of life as it flows, where everything is not obvious all the time. It’s thinking you had made the right decision only to realize that you had been wrong. It’s thinking that you have grown stronger and wiser, only to realize the opposite to be true. This is what is real, and this is what You and Everything Else depicts so beautifully.

The last segment of the story is the part that disappointed me most because it became draggy. We were going through the same ups and downs as we had gone through previously and Sang Hak as a character became utterly useless. At that point there was really no reason to continue with the story. Everything that needed to be established, had been; Sang Yeon has issues, likes to blame everyone but herself for things that are entirely her doing, and Eun Jung has a soft spot for Sang Yeon and will keep enabling her behavior until the end of time.

Okay, I know that this is me oversimplifying their dynamic but this is the essence of it.

Didn’t really care for Sang Yeon dying and didn’t really care for Eun Jung making the final decision to accompany her to Switzerland because again that entire dynamic has being explored already.

Overall, this show was enjoyable for factors such as the acting, the initial storyline, and the characters. I think that the overall length of the show ruined the pacing of the story when we entered 2013, making it draggy, redundant, and sort of pointless to be honest.

Yeah ok, Sang Yeon dies… so what?

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Strong follow-up by SeaKeen

Since this is a miniseries, I’ll do a mini-review.
Loved the concise storytelling, made possible by good writing and focusing on the main character. Also: all key aspects of a good BL story were neatly included in the script – something most Thai BLs have a problem with.
Unlike many BLs, this show has a single main character – Err – and not two main characters/main couple. Err is also the POV character for almost the entire show – only a handful of scenes had Mawin as a POV character. All that was kind of new for me as a BL consumer, but worked fine.
The cinematography, lighting and coloring were very good, giving the show an original, almost unique feeling – despite being shot in a rather mundane and ordinary surrounding. Kudos to the cinematography team.
Due to the show’s setting it required several support roles, but – despite of them populating the screen quite often – the show wisely did not stray into side plot/side characters territory. This also gave GMMTV an opportunity to let several of their rookies do something in front of a camera: Juno, Sangt, Tham and Titan debuted in this show, while the more experienced Acare, Aun, Captain and Chokun got more to do.
The show works so well thanks to very solid performances by both Keen (which was no surprise) and Sea (which I enjoyed immensely). The chemistry is there and while initially it may seem that the script is playing to the strengths of both actors (Keen – again – as the energetic half of the duo and Sea – again – portraying a withdrawn, toned down character) it all changes quickly – both Keen and Sea are fully unleashed, showcasing more of their range. Sea’s Mawin making some very good passes on Keen’s Err was a delight to watch.
SeaKeen’s second show confirmed that this ship is strong and improving. A little BL gem.

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My favorite historical drama so far

Personally, I prefer xianxia/wuxia over historical dramas. A great historical drama for me is usually on the same level as an average fantasy series, and yet, in my ranking, PoB was far above several fantasy series that I think are incredible.

​The plot was so well written. While the story is far from surprising and the tropes are well-known, it was so complete—with no room for plot holes or pointless subplots—that it elevated to another level, making it a delight to watch from beginning to end. Dropping it didnt even pass through my head.

The water metaphor that weaves through the entire story was included with such sensitivity that it's impossible not to learn a thing or two there.

​The actors just nailed it. I don't even have to say the great work the main couple did, but I also would like to shout out to the other cast members. All the characters were great, heroes and villains. There were some tiny annoying stuff here and there, but overall, I would give it a fairly a 9.

TL;DR: Its amazing. The plot, despite being cliché, is flawless with no plot holes, and the acting is incredible. 9/10 easy.

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Not Perfect but great for binge-watching

Are there plot holes? Yes
Does the story line make sense? Not really
Is the acting out of this world? No
Is it worth watching? Definitely

I did not keep watching the drama for the political or event familial plot. I watched solely for the relationship of the 2 main characters. Finding each other after so many years, bogged down by their own secrets & responsibilities. Giving their hearts to each other and the heaven's not being on their side. The male lead literally embodying the song Let The World Burn by Chris Grey. He wrecked havoc on the world to bring his loved one to his side and eventually being betrayed by him time and time again, even his death is bitter sweet.

I suppose I am a masochist enjoying un-requited love stories, heartbreak and emotional suffering gifted by the one you love. This drama, though not perfect, quelled my craving for a bitter-sweet, toxic and intoxicating love story.

What they could have done better is if there were fewer conflicts instead of so many, considering it was 12 episodes and 35 minutes each ep. They really could not have done justice anything besides the main characters love story. The actors had what it takes to deliver their characters, the director knew how to bring it to life, but the script was what was missing. Had it focused on a simpler arc for Duan Zi Ang and lesser betrayals it would have hit harder. The 2 lead's were getting hurt left, right, and center it was like back to back, I wanted to see more of their love story and just them.

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A short but sweet series to warm your heart

Even though the series only has four episodes and ended too early, they managed to pace the characters' development so that the next one wasn't too rushed. The plot and the series itself are well-directed, organized, and easy to understand.

Aside from the fact that SeaKeen's acting isn't 100% perfect yet, they did a great job playing their roles as the two protagonists. Especially Sea's performance as Mawin; he's improved since Only Boo! Perhaps playing the shyer character while Keen plays the more energetic one will be more their vibe, which is why it worked so well!

In conclusion, it's a good miniseries for those who enjoy fluff, serene and warm series with kind and good-hearted characters!

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Amazing acting by Uee, but regresses near the end

Little girl so cute!

I appreciate the fact that the single mother in the story actually has to take care of the kid, and it's a big part of the story. I appreciated that a lot. How she makes time for parenting. Having a kid is complicated! Most drama stories (and it's not contained to kdrama here) take parenthood as this thing that is kind of there in the background, but in reality kids become the new center of your reality, they can't be hand-waved away so easily.

So yeah, the kid in this drama is important, which is nice, but not just as a human being but also as a responsibility. The adults have to make time around the kid, not the other way around.

The victim blaming coming from the guy was definitely not something I expected though, and it soured the whole thing.

Overall, due to its ability to dodge frequent tropes, I would say this show was still decent, but it loses steam by the end.

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Best BL of the year

Three years of wait didn't disappoint. I always loved BOC for their quality like its more lile cinema quality really different from typical bl dramas. The costumes the atmosphere. The characters they designed it very well. Every character has their own story. The acting on point actors really does match their character. The story it self was really good. It was so realistic. I think NC seens not nessecary . But the story it self so good. I really loved the drama. Cant wait for the last ep. Victor and veera death really broke me. The fact that i stil cant forget it so tramuatizing i feel really bad for character. I highly recomnend this drama. Special mention The soundtracks so good give 90's vibes

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Don't Let the Ratings Fool You—This is a Hidden Gem!

Wow, this show took me completely by storm. I almost skipped it because of its low rating, but the supportive comments convinced me to give it a shot. What a fantastic decision. This is a genuinely underrated hidden gem, and I absolutely loved every minute of it.

I binged the entire series in just a few days because I simply couldn't stop watching. The cinematography is incredible, and the 1970s atmosphere is so immersive you feel like you're there. The acting is top-notch across the board, making a seemingly simple plot—get the treasure—into something truly captivating.

What I enjoyed most was how the show took the time to introduce each character's backstory, showing their motivations and how they eventually learned to work as a team. It's a powerful look at human greed and what people are willing to do for money. The series also does a great job of balancing the serious drama with well-placed comedic scenes.

My favorite character was Hui Dong, a pure soul who seemed to be the only truly good person in the entire show. The final episode is a beautiful mess in the best possible way. I never would have imagined that taking some pottery out of the sea could lead to so many twists, turns, and betrayals. Watching each character try to outsmart the others with their own individual strategies was incredible. This show is a must-watch for anyone looking for a unique and memorable story.

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My Question....

At this point, the only thing I care about is—WHO IS GETTING THE DOG?! Like seriously, where is he going to stay? Did the writer just forget about that? The guy literally went on a whole date for this storyline… and then poof, nothing.

And don’t even get me started on the ending. It didn’t even feel like an ending. I didn’t realize the show was over until today. Like… huh???

Don’t get me wrong, the series was absolutely amazing. Even though they completely ignored the romance angle, it was still worth watching. But that finale left us with way too many unanswered questions and zero closure.

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Enviable Relationships, Good Chemistry

Summary >>
This drama takes some time with its scrupulous, mindful characters. You will have to be patient with these often-times customary and habitual activities. However, the execution definitely stands apart from many other dramas. This drama screams about beauty in simplicity. All kinds of relationships, be it young lovers or familial consideration are very well presented in this work.

CHARACTERS >>
Xu Zhi: She is the charming, single, desirable, but disengaged girl. Our FL surely likes to compete doesn't matter if you're her boyfriend. However, she remains indifferent and is unable to read the emotions of people around her. Sometimes she is so objective and straightforward with her words that you are better off with a bitter medicine. Things start to change when she realizes she has feelings for the talented, responsible and mature Chen Lu Zhou

Chen Lu Zhou: The humble and unbeknownst topper from the No.1 high school in town. He tries to continue his life on the pre-decided path laid by his parents, only to encounter a smart and beautiful Xu Zhi. His relationship with his family may appear tumultous on the surface but is actually caring and well-wishing. His relationship with his mother doesn't appear to be good but both care about each other deeply.

Zhu Yang Qi: He is the friend naturally suited to partner with someone like CLZ. He doesn't hide any emotions... not for long at least. He is trying to heat up what would be the perfect pork and sauce that would refuse to be mixed. He along with his new bestie, makes things lively and excitable.

Cai Ying Ying: If you found her more attractive than Xu Zhi you won't be the only one in the room. Cai Ying Ying is the cute, encouraging best friend everyone would love to have, boys and girls alike.

The two dad-daughter pairs show contrasting but caring and meaningful relationships. The two doctor dads are very proud of their daughters. The healthy yet unrestrictive approach of Dr. Xu's parenting towards Xu Zhi is really satisfying to watch. The scenes where all four of these are present are very cheerful.
The anticipation of the two leads towards one another is quite natural to understand the other without even talking since both of them are very smart people. While, on the other hand, Zhu Yang Qi and Cai Ying Ying don't quite understand when they start liking each other when most of their actions are to bring their best friends together. Both of them are easy-going, fun-loving and good-natured individuals that are ignorant of each other's feelings.

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It Hurts So Good

Kill to Love is a beautifully crafted historical BL drama that I’d honestly compare to fine wine—it just gets better the longer you stick with it, lol. I wasn’t hooked at first; the beginning felt a bit vague and slow, but I’m so glad I didn’t give up. It keeps building up and gets more and more gripping with each episode.

Plot-wise, the concept isn’t entirely new—there’s forbidden love, betrayal, ambition, and power struggles—but the execution is what makes it stand out. It keeps you entertained and always curious about what’s going to happen next. Zi Ang and Shu He first crossed paths as kids when Zi Ang saved Shu He from danger. Years later, fate brings them back together as adults, and that’s where things really start to unfold.

I was also pleasantly surprised by the chemistry between the two leads. I mean, there are a lot of BL actors with great chemistry, but these two are on another level. On top of that, their performances were solid—especially Zhang Zhe. It’s his first main role, and I was honestly blown away by how good his acting was.

As the title suggests, Kill to Love is all about the lengths Zi Ang is willing to go just to win back the one he loves. He couldn’t care less about power—all he ever wanted was Shu He. You can really feel the depth of the story. It takes you on a rollercoaster of emotions. And even though there aren’t a lot of traditionally sweet or romantic scenes, the subtle gestures say it all. Through this series, you’ll feel sadness, joy, hope, heartbreak, and eventually, some form of healing.

The ending isn’t the typical “happily ever after,” but honestly, that’s what makes it hit even harder—it feels real. If you’re looking for a historical BL that’ll make you feel everything, this one’s definitely worth watching.

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Disappointed by this drama despite the acting & spicy scenes

I decided to watch this drama yesterday to find a specific moment for a reddit post. This is my second drama of Cao Sai Ya and of course I am familiar with Cao Tian Kai and his body of work. This drama is ok - well, I expected more.

What I liked:
1. Acting - Great acting by 3 leads. Cao Sai Ya had good chemistry with Cao Tian Kai and actor who played the antagonist.
2. Intimacy - Sexual tension between FL & ML was high. Passionate kisses and physical intimacy were plenty. CTK's abs on display more than once.
3. Styling - Impeccable styling for both FL & ML. Her heels were very high - I guess she must be tiny & petite. I like the contrasting styling for the two sisters.
4. Supporting characters - I liked ML's right hand man.
5. Ending - I liked it because it was realistic.

What I disliked:
1. Antagonist - SML Shen Ji Bai was a psychopath. He was cruel, sinister & possessive.
2. Writing - I felt the arc involving FL and antagonist too draggy. I knew he was evil in the first scene involving him and the twins but later there were plenty of torture scenes. It felt like FL didn't have concrete plans to rescue her sister. I wish she just approached ML for help and worked together on a plan. I also disliked that FL's identity was kept secret from ML for too long.
3. Romance - There was no emotional connection between FL and ML so I didn't believe in their love story.

Favourite scene
When FL & ML had grilled skewers for their date

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