tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22673863999702939572024-03-13T23:49:21.798-07:00Liking Necks Doesn't Make Me a VampireBut if it does, then I guess I am one... highly devoted to Kdramas, Kpop, and all other similar things, including Mandopop, Taiwanese and Japanese dramas, Anime, and so on.MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comBlogger563125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-40138277199260879822021-03-14T12:55:00.002-07:002021-03-14T12:55:47.138-07:00444. Falling Into You 因為我喜歡你 (2020) Taiwanese<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Puff Guo, Jiro Wang, Zhang Ben Yu, Chen Jiong Jiang</b><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Drama Rating: 8/10 Neck Score: A</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2aA1EbM-lLs/YE5nULyMwPI/AAAAAAAAnL8/k21Vzw6F2vMk4Hq0ZzYgK3BRdKOKyVj4wCLcBGAsYHQ/s1449/11467-p_200904.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1449" data-original-width="1024" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2aA1EbM-lLs/YE5nULyMwPI/AAAAAAAAnL8/k21Vzw6F2vMk4Hq0ZzYgK3BRdKOKyVj4wCLcBGAsYHQ/w283-h400/11467-p_200904.jpg" width="283" /></a></div>I realized that it had been a while since I've watched a Taiwanese Drama (I've been focusing on Mainland China lately) and so I browsed what was there, and I realized that I had missed watching this drama with Puff Guo, which is terrible because I absolutely love her. I will watch anything and everything for her. Added bonus was that Jiro Wang was her male lead, and I don't mind that one bit. He's hot. So I immediately pressed play and it immediately filled the hole that my last fluffy drama ending had created. It was so cute and fun. I loved that it was shorter (13 episodes) so they didn't drag things out or waste time on unnecessary stuff. I loved that it was once again about a fighter girl, this time a taekwondo athlete, and a dude who falls in love with her because she's an awesome and a fighter, and I love the mutual respect. Were there still some problems? Yeah, it's awkward at times, but ultimately it was cute, fluffy, and funny. It was even on the meta side, especially with our self-centered, bubbly start up CEO male lead who thinks of himself as the male lead of a drama anyway, and so is constantly referencing it.</div><span><a name='more'></a></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">So, Chen Zi Tong is a taekwondo champion who gets injured and loses everything at the same time, including her best friend, boyfriend, and mom. Because of this she turns into a cold, stone faced loner, focused on making money. She gets a job as a courier in a quick delivery startup owned by Fang Zhisheng. He is the flashy, outgoing type, so her tunnel vision business only persona rubs him the wrong way. He misunderstands her as cold-hearted and only caring about money. She thinks he's an annoying rich boy who has always had it easy. Because he's nosy and over-the-top, he decides to make her his personal assistant to find her weakness and get revenge, she agrees because she needs the money, and then of course they slowly become friends, then lovers. So yes, it's another enemies to lovers, in a good way. Best moment: learns she's probably a famous athlete, searches her, sees her win a champion match (and smile for the first time), his reaction: 😍😍😍. But I guess he also had hearts in his eyes the first time she popped in and beat up a bunch of thugs who were threatening him.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I felt like the pacing was perfect for solving all the plots and tying all the loose ends. Because it was so short, they didn't waste anytime with misunderstandings or being overly dramatic. The initial misunderstanding is only at the beginning and then once again we have a couple who trusts each other completely and supports each other in their respective skills, talents, and goals. If they fight, they're working it out immediately. It was very refreshing. Plus, lots of eye candy. I still can't get over every time Jiro wore glasses, and her brother's sexiness is like a personal attack every time he's on the screen. I'm ready for a noona romance if that's what the younger guys look like these days (um, the second couple is like 45 and 35, so it's not even that big a deal- we're all adults here). So yeah, highly recommend it as a cute, fluffy, short drama. Although, there is a lot of blood in some flashbacks, because of course Zhisheng has a traumatic past. Because of course. But still solved quickly in the 13 episodes, so not complaining. I loved this drama and literally binged it over one weekend. It's fun.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-64714811172546875032021-03-14T12:03:00.001-07:002021-03-14T12:03:39.343-07:00438. Love Unexpected 不可思议的爱情 (2021) Chinese<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Fan Shi Qi, Qi Yan Di, Wang Xu Dong, Shen Yao, Zha Jie, Wang Xu Dong</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;">Drama Rating: 7/10 Neck Score: A</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_awvu9w-vCw/YE5VufWHOJI/AAAAAAAAnL0/ksAJd6a5zT89DtZiEN9kncujXcJZMFszQCLcBGAsYHQ/s936/4a14b4d8d5c48f158ef0b5f53ba45e0a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="936" data-original-width="608" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_awvu9w-vCw/YE5VufWHOJI/AAAAAAAAnL0/ksAJd6a5zT89DtZiEN9kncujXcJZMFszQCLcBGAsYHQ/w260-h400/4a14b4d8d5c48f158ef0b5f53ba45e0a.jpg" width="260" /></a></div>I started this one because I wanted something fluffy, and then stopped it because it looked too cheesy and Ke Si Yi seemed annoyingly cheerful and air headed. But for some reason I went back to it the next day because I had nothing better to watch. After getting further into it, it totally surprised me with the premise, which wasn't what I expected it to be at all. I knew it was about an emotionless man and an overly emotional girl, but it's totally sci-fi because they get it switched so that he ends up feeling her physical pain and she can feel his emotions. Suddenly, it became super interesting. I also grew to love the overly emotional mess that Ke Si Yi was, and was super impressed with the dead pan, emotionless acting of the male lead Xu Nuo (props to Fan Shi Qi, he did a great job). It was a very interesting concept to have a couple fall in love when he literally can't feel emotions, but she can feel his. Interesting in how she distinguishes the two emotions and how they can also get confused. It definitely surprised me as it became the show I was looking forward to every week, which was hard because it wasn't getting subbed fast enough for me. It would thankfully be done by the end of the week (right before the new episodes came out), it's just that when you know they are there, taunting you, not getting subbed, it was hard to be patient. But I guess my impatience speaks to how well I loved this show.</div><span><a name='more'></a></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I was really invested in all the characters. The second couple was super cute and fun to watch. It was a great dynamic in general, since all the girls in the show were MMA fighters, but each had their own distinct characters, from super feminine and cute, to more tomboyish. I also loved how the guys fell in love with them in part because they could totally break them in half, being attracted to their fighting prowess and awesomeness.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I loved the pacing of the story, and the organic development of the love story. I seemed to happen really naturally, especially since it was also a bit of an enemies to lovers story, since she literally is working for the bad guy, becoming his body guard to save her MMA team and gym. He is keeping her near him because that way he can somewhat control her getting hurt (with the pain he will only feel), but in doing so they get close and fall in love, naturally. I loved that her emotionality both exasperates him, but also that he respects it as skills he doesn't have.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">But it did get a bit annoying when there is the inevitable break up. However, I did love that it was for a better reason (still noble idiocy and annoying), and that it wasn't because she lied to him. I absolutely love that he knew she was lying way before it came out in the open, and that he didn't care. He totally understood where she was coming from and trusted her. I freaking loved that. The amount of trust in that couple was beautiful. The ending felt too abrupt. I think a lot of people felt that, since apparently there is a special with an alternative ending. I need to find out if it is subbed anywhere, because I must watch it. I need more of them being cute, since they didn't have as much of that near the end (but boy did they have it before things went to crap). So I loved it, but it could have been a bit better. I guess I loved this couple too much to want to see 4 episodes of them not being together, even if it was to wrap up the plot reasonably. But I wasn't into the corporate take over plot, only the romantic plot (which was way more emphasized most of the time) so any time away from one of the couples was wasted time to me. But still, it's ultimately a cute, fun show.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-73389015485789761822021-03-12T13:17:00.000-08:002021-03-12T13:17:14.328-08:00440. Forever Love 百岁之好,一言为定 (2020) Chinese<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Wang An Yu, Xiang Han Zhi, Pan Mei Ye, Chen Ze</b><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;">Drama Rating: 7/10 Neck Score: A</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QL9VLruwoQk/YEvZ0NMShrI/AAAAAAAAnLs/rTTR7EIemAA7PBPTx9WyFaVU67ZjOuXfACLcBGAsYHQ/s1539/a72b829f9539ff260bfbade908ae31ba.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1539" data-original-width="900" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QL9VLruwoQk/YEvZ0NMShrI/AAAAAAAAnLs/rTTR7EIemAA7PBPTx9WyFaVU67ZjOuXfACLcBGAsYHQ/w234-h400/a72b829f9539ff260bfbade908ae31ba.jpg" width="234" /></a></div>I started this drama because the male lead looked normal guy hot instead of pretty boy, with his buzzed head and all. I hadn't paid any attention to be before seeing in while browsing. It definitely lived up to that expectation. He was way normal guy hot, with lots of charisma too. The main couple in general was way cute and I loved them. However, there was also too much to hate in the drama because of that. Because the main couple were such cute and nice people, it made the offending people all the more despicable and I spent the entire drama filled with anger for the people manipulating and trying to manipulate them. To the point that while the main couple deserve a 10/10, the "antagonists" of the drama deserve a 1/10. I thought I would be fair and keep it at a 7, but I am still feeling anger and the desire to punch senior brother's face because I just imagined his face, so maybe it really deserves a 6. I don't know, it just makes me so angry.</div><span><a name='more'></a></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">So, Xia Lin Xi is the perfect student. Super smart, class president, and overly hardworking. Her stubborn obedience to school rules leads her to get tangled up with Jiang Zheng Han, who is the lowest ranking student in class and rarely shows up. Because she is asked to make sure he starts coming, she pretty much forces her way into his life and being friends with him. He is not the lowest ranking because of lack of talent and skills but more in the fact that he's poor, working too many jobs, and prioritizing the wrong things in life. Then they become the cutest friends who obviously like each other, etc. Like, seriously become cute right away, once they understand each other. Which doesn't take that long at all to get past the misunderstandings. That's the best part of the show. This couple communicates.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">However, the teachers at the high school suck. Her mom is a freaking tiger mom and while understandable, she drives me nuts. Then everything always gets worse once they get to college. I got annoyed with how long it took her to forgive him for ghosting her at graduation/college exam time. She deserved to be mad, but not how long that dragged on (It probably wasn't that long, but with everything else it felt long). And then we have the worst love rivals. They were petty, entitled, and didn't listen to other's opinions. The senior brother, her neighbor growing up, was the very worst. Not taking her thoughts and feelings into consideration, being weak willed and stupid, and most of all not listening and thinking he knew best. I hated him so much. The main couple was so straight forward and honest, even when she was mad at him, but everyone else had to be very petty and backbiting. The senior sister was a freaking passive aggressive monster. RAGE!!!!!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">So... I don't know. I loved the couple, but was too angry to appreciate the drama as a whole. I don't want to be angry the entire time watching it, but I basically was, and then when they tried to redeem absolutely everyone at the end, I wasn't having it all. I secretly liked the most villainous dude, the roommate's boyfriend, because he at least was honest about his playing dirty. But his redemption was absolutely awkward, and they overdid his pettiness too, it got old. I was more lenient with the senior sister and other roommate, because they figured out way sooner and on their own that they were being unfair and dumb. But they dragged out senior brother's badness way too long. He fell way too low, and I despise him with all the room in my heart that I can bother to spare him (which is nothing. I hate him, but whatever, moving on). So I don't know that I would recommend it, because I don't recommend things that fill me with rage. I had to rage tweet to even make it through. The main couple is adorable though, so there is that.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-22005195357154496592021-02-26T12:26:00.004-08:002021-02-26T12:29:39.254-08:00431. Jiu Liu Overlord 九流霸主 (2020) Chinese<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Bai Lu, Lai Yi, Fang Yi Lun, Xu Mu Chan</b><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;">Drama Rating: 4.5/10 Neck Score: A</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pJJ-rgFFxlU/YDlZHnXCzII/AAAAAAAAnKA/8C18tk-pYtEPndZvEtiE-I8Ib_p6-QNrgCLcBGAsYHQ/s700/20201024034401bd5ac999965c1b2d897b490b638a9623.jpg.h700.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="469" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pJJ-rgFFxlU/YDlZHnXCzII/AAAAAAAAnKA/8C18tk-pYtEPndZvEtiE-I8Ib_p6-QNrgCLcBGAsYHQ/w268-h400/20201024034401bd5ac999965c1b2d897b490b638a9623.jpg.h700.jpg" width="268" /></a></div>I started this one 100% for Lai Yi, having love him since he was Senior Disciple in <a href="https://lndmmv.blogspot.com/2017/04/247-three-lives-three-worlds-ten-miles.html" target="_blank">10 Miles of Peach Blossoms</a>, and Heavenly Doctor in <a href="https://lndmmv.blogspot.com/2018/08/315-legend-of-fuyao-2018-chinese.html" target="_blank">Legend of Fuyao</a>, but I stayed (at first) because the couple had good chemistry. I loved that they were both super business nerds, and that she could press his buttons and break him out of his stuffy shell to try new things and improve his business even more. Sadly, that wonderful chemistry wasn't enough to carry the whole drama, because there was serious dragging issues. There was a mystery plot about corruption and the evil magistrate (father to the second female lead) obviously trying to kill our leads. But what is worse is that plot was super secondary to the unnecessary drama of the romance. Obviously the main couple liked each other and had enough reason to know that the other did, but still they were both too awkward and quick tempered to say it or stay on good terms enough to be vulnerable with the other, and so it dragged on needlessly long, giving fuel to the two second leads to be increasingly more annoying. Then it got even worse when the entire drama suddenly changed plots and became absolutely ridiculously bad. They literally made him allergic to women at the beginning and then just forgot about it later on. Honestly, I'm still not sure why I finished it, but I did, so here is a full review.</div><span><a name='more'></a></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The first two thirds of the show is about their romance and building a business together. They are from two different worlds, so there are a lot of differences, since he is a merchant class and she is a street rat gang leader. However, their personalities are complimentary opposites and they are both passionate about business in a way that makes them power couple material, if they would just get over their pride and become one. Instead, we have the constant annoyance of the love rivals who both clearly know they never had a chance but are too stubborn and entitled to the point of never giving up. This cycle of them being into each other, waiting for the other to confess, and then fighting when one of them says the wrong thing (giving an opportunity to the second leads to add lots of oil to that fire and blow it all out of proportion) goes on frustratingly too long. To the point where I could rage quite just based on that frustration. At this point, the second leads weren't bad, just annoying. That's the problem, I guess, when they are friends with their crushes and the leads are too nice and care about them as friends too much to stop them from taking advantage of them. It is super frustrating. Especially since we have to watch the second leads steadily get worse to the point where they are ready to just go full blown evil or crazy.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Then the last third of the show is a train wreck. Sudden birth secrets that ruin my favorite part of the set up, he is just a rich merchant. Middle class, but only with financial power. Suddenly he is now secretly a prince, and to save her life he has to actually go to the palace and live as a prince. The magistrate who was trying to kill him one episode earlier is now suddenly going to be his father-in-law as the king forces his newly found son to marry the second female lead, who has already been sister-zoned at least 3 times at this point. This means that when our girl Long Ao Yi ends up in the capital to solve a murder, she then has that whole betrayal on top of it, since he clearly didn't wait for her and is getting married.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The last part was the worst because the male lead, Qingliu, was constantly powerless because he had to appease his dad's unreasonable demands (since he was expected to act as a prince having not grown up as one), Long Ao Yi constantly being mean to him because she was hurt, and the second leads were steadily getting more and more crazy. Then there are some seriously messed up crap too, where Prince Zhao, so desperate to win her, tries to get her against her will, which turns into a contest where both men are trying to win her her through dancing and the dowager queen is just giving her away like she's property. And then the fiancée is so desperate to keep Qingliu (even though she's literally engaged to him) that she's going to drug him to get herself pregnant and entrap him that way, which means the leads to get drugged and sleep together instead. And then it keeps getting more messed up with faked pregnancies, baddies going completely bat shiz and assassinating people right and left, and then the writers obviously just making whatever crap up they want that makes no sense. The king ends up looking like a complete douche who just sacrificed his family as they do all his work for him, and somehow they still manage to give the main couple a happy ending, but at this point it's at such a high cost that we don't even care.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I feel like the cast was wasted on some really terrible writing. The original plot had potential, if they had just tightened the writing and made it like 20 episodes at the most. Honestly, there were definitely more than 16 episodes of crap, but I think that if they had focused less on dragging out the romance drama and just gave us a power couple who took down the corruption in the business world, left out the stupid royal subplot, and made the original bad guys the actual main bad guys without just making up crap at the end, it would have been much better. So, I don't recommend it at all, and now I'm going to go watch Lai Yi be the Heavenly Grumpy Doctor again to cleanse my palate.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-6617648655524034322021-02-21T14:23:00.000-08:002021-02-21T14:23:06.846-08:00Love 020 微微一笑很倾城 (2016) Chinese<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Jing Boran, Angelababy </b><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Movie rating: 7/10 Neck score: A</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4eoowevkiQI/YDLc9TJ-vdI/AAAAAAAAnJw/IXat4HkOc38ny5cEVS3fvEgXU81N7vmgQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/b20a3a86665c4e8_size874_w4690_h6614.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1452" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4eoowevkiQI/YDLc9TJ-vdI/AAAAAAAAnJw/IXat4HkOc38ny5cEVS3fvEgXU81N7vmgQCLcBGAsYHQ/w284-h400/b20a3a86665c4e8_size874_w4690_h6614.jpg" width="284" /></a></div>I figured having loved the show, I would have to give the movie a try sometime. I'm glad I did. It was very good. In some aspects I would say better than the drama, but both are definitely well worth watching. The movie obviously had a better budget, because the CGI and sets were way better, and way more realistic. I also think all the acting was better too. I think that both Jing Boran and Angelababy were able to show more realistic and fleshed out characters in less than 2 hours than in the whole length of the series. I love the micro-expressions that give us insight into the "gaming god" character of Xiao Nai. I also loved seeing a more nerdy, gamer girl version of Bei Weiwei. She was way more engaged and I actually believed she played games instead of just looking perfect and pretty. But there really was only 2 hours to put in the whole plot, so everything does feel like it's moving at a lightening pace and is way over simplified. I really missed them spending more time on the side characters, and especially the plotline of the awkward relationship between Hao Mei and KO. They only had time for like two scenes that mentioned that whole mess, which is a real shame. So on the whole, both are great for different reasons. It's only when you are comparing the two that you'll notice the production quality is way better for the movie, and the leads in the drama are so pretty that you don't really mind that they aren't the best at acting. It's fine. I still love both and recommend both as great. But if you only want to spend a few hours, the movie is the way to go, if you want to invest for a long haul, watch the drama.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-67894843456621043332021-02-21T13:43:00.000-08:002021-02-21T13:43:54.310-08:00439. My Little Happiness 我的小确幸 (2021) Chinese<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Xing Fei, Tang Xiao Tian, Huang Yi Lin, Li Chuan</b><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Drama Rating: 7/10 Neck Score: A</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-et2-7PKFwDE/YDLRKTh4HtI/AAAAAAAAnJk/z47IAn5188c0RKLpc8dyQzVZEqIVVpwEwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1920/0130fc5ff40b3911013fdcc7b82df9.jpg%25401280w_1l_2o_100sh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="1280" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-et2-7PKFwDE/YDLRKTh4HtI/AAAAAAAAnJk/z47IAn5188c0RKLpc8dyQzVZEqIVVpwEwCLcBGAsYHQ/w266-h400/0130fc5ff40b3911013fdcc7b82df9.jpg%25401280w_1l_2o_100sh.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>I started this one because I needed a modern Chinese romcom to help me be more patient while waiting for Love Unexpected to be subtitled. I had been hearing good things about it, and I was curious to see Tan Xiao Tian be the male lead after watching him be the second lead in <a href="https://lndmmv.blogspot.com/2019/11/356-put-your-head-on-my-shoulder-2019.html" target="_blank">Put Your Head on My Shoulder</a> (also seeing him have a serious glow up since then too, rawr). It's the same girl too, which is always funny. Something for all those SLS shippers, I guess. Totally different characters though, which gives props to Xiao Tian. I really loved the dynamic between the leads. They had great chemistry and also it was a much less misunderstanding filled plot than most. Which means that yes, there were a lot of misunderstandings (the biggest one was annoying but manageable) but that they were solved really quickly. Mostly, I loved how mature the main couple was for the most part. They were both working professionals (she was interning to become a lawyer and he was a surgeon) and respected the other's profession a lot. In fact, their proficiency in their professions was even an attraction for them. The fact that she fell for him at first sight because she saw him save a man at the airport and he had that competent doctor glow is just cute. I really love how much they supported each other in their jobs too, and supported each other with their jobs too.</div><span><a name='more'></a></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I loved the opposites of characters attracting. She was a little fireball, social justice warrior. Very blunt and clear about her opinions about law, while hiding her feelings about love and stuff. He was a very soft spoken, gentle giant who was super open about his feelings (and constantly flirting) while only being fierce about things when needed, and usually about protecting his patients or loved ones. His mildness personally almost belied how intense he would get when teaching his students or saving patients. But it also made for great bedside manners. Those opposite approaches to their same passion for helping people almost put them at odds until they realized their same goal of saving people in their own ways.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I was super invested in the second couple too. In fact, I was more invested in them at points because they were at least making some progress when the main couple wasn't. Although they ended up taking longer, because of course they did. But I like it when there are multiple couples rather than huge love triangles. They were another set of opposites attracting, since she was a one-track minded simple but passionate type, and he was a chill, done with everything, what's left to be passionate about type. But they also balanced each other out, since he made her more chill and she pushed him out of his apathetic existence. There were love rivals, but they either excused themselves early or never did anything but be mopey butts, so it was fine. That's about the level I can handle these days anyway.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I don't know what else to say about it. It was cute. There was a TON of kissing in it. Like more kissing in one episode than some C-dramas will have in the entire show. Once the couples got together they were not shy about the kissing, which was interesting since there was a huge height difference. Did their necks/upper backs ever hurt during filming? Well... the dudes weren't shy about the kissing anyway. That might have been a minor struggle for the main couple as he was like: I'm going to kiss you everywhere! and she's like: Me no likey the PDA. She did get awkward about expressing emotions around others. Thankfully, she slowly got over it and just wanted to be cute with him too. Not that I'm saying PDA is better, but having them on the same page was nice. Less of the owl eyes kisses and being awkward about being affectionate the better. So yeah, super cute, watch it.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-46975278600177305402021-02-21T12:59:00.001-08:002021-02-21T12:59:53.240-08:00433. Mr. Queen 철인왕후 (2020-2021) Korean<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Shin Hye Sun, Kim Jung Hyun, Bae Jong Ok, Kim Tae Woo<br /></b><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Drama Rating: 9/10 Neck Score: A+</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5r7AMMu4rJc/YDLJFsXUhuI/AAAAAAAAnJY/ma-ZmCd6Pos-Py1Vy4-v26unUMjbV30EgCLcBGAsYHQ/s512/unnamed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="361" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5r7AMMu4rJc/YDLJFsXUhuI/AAAAAAAAnJY/ma-ZmCd6Pos-Py1Vy4-v26unUMjbV30EgCLcBGAsYHQ/w283-h400/unnamed.jpg" width="283" /></a></div>I had my eye on this one when it was announced, and it did not disappoint. Although I'll admit that it was not exactly what I expected. I was thinking it would be more like a body swap, but instead it was a gender swap/soul swap. So not <a href="https://lndmmv.blogspot.com/2014/01/19-secret-garden-2010-korean.html" target="_blank">Secret Garden</a>, but <a href="https://lndmmv.blogspot.com/2016/11/224-moon-lovers-scarlet-heart-ryeo-2016.html" target="_blank">Scarlet Heart Ryeo</a> except the person going back in time in the soul swap was a free spirited, playboy chef named Jang Bong Hwan, ending up in the body of Kim So Yong, the soon to be queen of Joseon. I was immediately caught when that free spirited chef was played by Choi Jin Hyuk. A lovely unexpected special appearance that made everything even better, especially since he still did the voice of the chef's thoughts inside the queen's body. So imagine deep manly voice as the petite Shin Hye Sun acted it out. I thought their team work was amazing. I have an even deeper respect for Shin Hye Sun in this role. It really felt like she was channeling Choi Jin Hyuk even down to the expressions. Then add in amazing chemistry between her and Kim Jung Hyun and yes, this drama was awesome. I haven't raved while telling people about dramas in a while, but I was totally talking my sisters' ears off about this one.</div><span><a name='more'></a></span><div><br /></div><div>Yes, there was a lot that you just had to let go. It wasn't historically accurate by any means. The things that Jang Bong Hwan got away with as the queen was a far stretch, but this is a comedy, so that doesn't really matter. What does matter is that is was super funny and super compelling. It also had an ensemble that you really cared about. Even the villains made you care about them, as they were very well rounded to the point where you loved them and hated them all at once, or at least were just shaking your head at them. The ensemble was so good, in fact, that they made a special that filled out some of the in between scenes and gave us more story to those side characters, as well as more cuteness between the leads as well. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if these weren't all scenes that were just cut, but so cute and funny that they decided to create the special so that they could still be shared. I'm not sure, I didn't research it. I just watched it and loved it, since it meant more of these wonderful characters.</div><div><br /></div><div>I wasn't 100% satisfied with the ending (but that might have been because I didn't want it to end) because it was a complicated situation, very similar to <a href="https://lndmmv.blogspot.com/2016/05/161-oh-my-ghostess-2015-korean.html" target="_blank">Oh My Ghostess</a>, because the king is falling in love with the queen only after she has Jang Bong Hwan inside her. Is he falling in love with the queen or with Bong Hwan? Bong Hwan's feelings are also super conflicted because he doesn't know if it's him having a sexual identity crisis or if what he's feeling is due to the queen's soul still being in the body too, so their emotions and memories are blended. It's a mess on that point, because there are three identities involved, but two are blended and we don't know where the real Kim So Yong is and if she is there, why is she not more involved. So in the end, I was a bit unsatisfied because we didn't really get to know the real So Yong very well, so to have her remain at the end, as not the person we were emotionally invested in, was a bit meh. Like, didn't the king really fall in love with Bong Hwan? Seemed like a cop out to me. Not going to lie, I wanted reincarnated Cheoljong to meet real Bong Hwan at the end. They could at least be friends in the modern world too. But I do understand that things do need to go back to the way they were supposed to be, and we did see a bit of who So Yong was, and she was also cool, just way less investment into her, that's all.</div><div><br /></div><div>Anyways, I really loved it and highly recommend it. It was a lot of fun, if you want some sageuk but with plenty of comedy and really lovable characters. Also, make sure you also watch the special, Mr. Queen: The Secret. It's super cute and funny. It also gives more glimpses into So Yong, pre-Bong Hwan, so you can love her more too.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-68592248285298550312021-02-12T13:50:00.000-08:002021-02-12T13:50:59.154-08:00435. Legend of Fei 有翡 (2020) Chinese<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Zhao Liying, Wang Yibo, Zhang Hui Wen, Chen Ruo Xuan<br /></b><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Drama Rating: 9/10 Neck Score: A<br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gH-dTBlV6fk/YCbva6bLxbI/AAAAAAAAnG4/fpZr4dhGApc6c1EPpQTYERxvgHw2GwCuQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1512/e6bb4f096d5db7489dc14977e5052e16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1512" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gH-dTBlV6fk/YCbva6bLxbI/AAAAAAAAnG4/fpZr4dhGApc6c1EPpQTYERxvgHw2GwCuQCLcBGAsYHQ/w286-h400/e6bb4f096d5db7489dc14977e5052e16.jpg" width="286" /></a></div>Oh my heck, I loved this show, and not just because I'm a bit obsessed with Wang Yibo, but because this was a show with really bad-ass women. Like super strong, awesome women, and their men who respect and love them in all their awesomeness. Zhou Fei (Zhao Liying) is just an awesome female lead, who is strong but also chill. Who stands up for justice, is stubborn, but also soft and loving. Her relationship with Xie Yun (Wang Yibo) is just beautiful. The fact that they have different strengths, and she is usually the one protecting him, but he's just like: ok, be careful! And then helping her from the sidelines. The fact that they would both do anything to protect the other, but also respect each other's skills and know when they don't actually need to be protected. Chef's kiss. It's wonderful. Also, all the characters. I just loved everyone, even the ones who were bad, overly evil, or started off as annoying or stupid. This is a show about some serious growth, and for pretty much everyone. Even the elders learn a thing or two and become more open to the strengths of the younger generation, or get wrecked because they don't.</div><span><a name='more'></a></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I heard someone describe it on Twitter (sorry I don't remember who) as an RPG with lots of side quests, and they weren't wrong at all. There is the overarching problem or goal of getting the legendary artifact Hai Tian Yi Se, but there are so many other side plots and stories that don't seem to quite connect until all the pieces start falling into place. Was this originally a D&D campaign? It wouldn't surprise me. We have a Fighter/Sword hero, a monk, a druid/poison master, rogue, barbarian... it's still a Wuxia drama so most of the heroes are sword masters, but I probably could find subclasses to fit them all into if I tried hard enough. But I do love that no one has to stay in their initial box. Each of the female leads was strong in their own ways. A'Fei was a master martial artist, Chu Chu had her own gentle strength that was diplomatic and strategically smart, with a good dash of scholarly as well. Even Li Yan had her evil manipulation genius as she talked her way out of bad situations and got herself a little harem of dudes who could protect her when she couldn't. As the youngest and most naïve, she still carried her own weight for the most part, even if it was just taming some of the dudes with her domineering ways.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">At the start of it, everyone is so young and naïve, but thankful mostly likable. I'll admit that I didn't like Li Sheng at first, which made his growing up the more appreciative. It's that sort of change from being young and stupid, hot headed, or frivolous, to being the heroes that are willing and able to take on anything, who think before they leap, and who respect what they have and use it to protect, etc. that just makes for a good story. Also, throw in a side of multiple sweet romances, and you've got a great drama. I appreciate also that there were little to no love triangles, because while romance is a heavy element, it's not the main plot, and I am so over love triangles. Obviously romance is a strong part of the drama. I would say that the main couple's love story is one of the most important elements, a driving motivation for some of the show, but ultimately their relationship is more of a tool to their development rather than a plot.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I also loved the Disha bad guys for the most part. I was a little annoyed with a few of them, but overall, they were a classy set of villains. I freaking loved Shen Tian Shu's deep gravelly voice and smirk. I swear they made eyepatch dude, Tong Tian Yang, have the eyepatch to hide his handsome, chiseled features. I loved his over-the-top evilness. I actually just loved that even the group of villains had a variety of characters and talents too, with very distinct personalities from over-the-top in your face to "I'm kind of done with this shiz." <br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">So, if you like Wuxia, or Chinese fantasy costume dramas, I highly recommend this one as an awesome drama, with strong, awesome female leads, dudes who love them BECAUSE they are awesome and powerful, and a lovely weave of side quests that carefully lead us to a pretty great climax. I almost didn't want to finish it, because then it would be over. In fact I had like 8 episodes left and I started a rewatch of <a href="https://lndmmv.blogspot.com/2019/10/350-untamed-2019-chinese.html" target="_blank">The Untamed</a> instead (to see baby Wang Yibo) to delay the inevitable. And also because I knew that once I started those episodes I wouldn't stop until it was over. I lost a bit of sleep to that fact, but that is also just a testament to how good this show it. I loved it.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-36249937816162377982021-02-05T13:16:00.078-08:002021-02-12T12:38:26.099-08:00437. Run On 런 온 (2021) Korean<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Im Siwan, Shin Se Kyung, Sooyoung, Kang Tae Oh</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;">Drama Rating: 9/10 Neck Score: A</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l-VWkwfO1hg/YCbms6uDBuI/AAAAAAAAnGs/4MugmBm9sNY4owb3FiYNmsEyK6fE3-QvwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1720/%25EB%258B%25A4%25EC%259A%25B4%25EB%25A1%259C%25EB%2593%259C_%25284%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1720" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l-VWkwfO1hg/YCbms6uDBuI/AAAAAAAAnGs/4MugmBm9sNY4owb3FiYNmsEyK6fE3-QvwCLcBGAsYHQ/w279-h400/%25EB%258B%25A4%25EC%259A%25B4%25EB%25A1%259C%25EB%2593%259C_%25284%2529.jpg" width="279" /></a></div>Dang it, I started this and then it didn't save, and somehow got published before it was finished, lol. I'm not sure why this review was so hard to write besides all that. I loved this drama, but it's also hard for me to describe in words that will accurately show how great it is. It's like a melodrama that was instead turned into a slice of life, if that makes sense. It has all the tropes of a typical melodrama set up, with the orphans, the chaebols, the overly ambitious politicians, celebrities, and quirky artists. But instead of it being a dramatic mess, instead it humanized at these typically stereotyped characters and made them real people. Incredibly flawed and lovable people. I very much appreciated that there weren't those lame tropes like love triangles, but instead we got multiple sets of people developing their relationships in very organic ways, where the biggest tests of their relationships are getting to know each other and working out differences. Not that other things don't also influence and that there weren't any misunderstandings, there of course were, but they were the real kind and the couples were really good at talking through them instead of being dumb. That was probably the best part, it was full of communication, but also the dialog felt very organic and real. It let the characters be awkward, imperfect, and lovable.</div><span><a name='more'></a></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I really enjoyed the independence of Oh Mi Joo (Shin Se Kyung). She had figured out what she wanted and what she could take, and had a snarky wit on top of it. I really love all the female relationships she had too. Her roommate May or with Seo Dan Ah (Sooyoung), the chaebol who has no empathy. I loved Dan Ah and her inability to recognize how rude/mean she is being because of her over bluntness. I also loved how she learned to a bit more. Also, her smile is just killer.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I also really loved the bromances. Im Siwan of course was amazing as Ki Seon Gyeom, and I love how he portrayed a boy who grew up without parental support who just didn't develop the social skills that most people gain, or pop culture knowledge, but instead had decided on his own what he valued and would strive for, to the point of being a paragon of incorruptibility, or whatever. Like serious self-discipline, dude. I loved him and his teammates, not knowing that they are besties, but being besties. I love him and Lee Yong Hwa (Kang Tae Oh) as sudden friends. Like, is he an ENFP on the MBTI, because he just loves everyone and just squeezes himself into their lives.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I really loved how it was paced. It was a real life journey with such good character development, in nice arcs, with good resolutions. I loved watching all the characters grow. It was healing almost. Just a quiet, slice of life, but with all the making to be a melodrama instead, but it wasn't. Instead it was lovely and cute. I started it late, binged it, and then was sad I had to wait for the last 2 weeks of episodes. But I fell in love with all the characters too much to pace myself. It's so good.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-43333391516066019402021-02-03T13:58:00.000-08:002021-02-03T13:58:27.443-08:00Our Times 我的少女时代 (2015) Taiwanese<p><b>Vivian Sung, Darren Wang, Dino Lee, Dewi Chien</b></p><p>Movie rating: 8/10 Neck score: A</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KIZZx-EB5Qo/YBsbkMWtF2I/AAAAAAAAnFs/seflcTSp7jo97AEdRkIRkBCehKPrihVogCLcBGAsYHQ/s377/Our_Times%252C_Movie_Poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="377" data-original-width="264" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KIZZx-EB5Qo/YBsbkMWtF2I/AAAAAAAAnFs/seflcTSp7jo97AEdRkIRkBCehKPrihVogCLcBGAsYHQ/w280-h400/Our_Times%252C_Movie_Poster.jpg" width="280" /></a></div>I randomly saw a review of Our Times in my YouTube suggestions, and I was like: is that Darren Wang? And then I looked it up and got super interested and found a subtitled version to watch. It's a really fun coming of age/high school/first love type movie, about a girl who gets a chain letter and sends it to the school's bad boy because she saw him picking on her crush, the school perfect prince. The great part is that he figures out who sent it to him (and made him get hit by a car) and she is forced to be his errand girl. But then of course they are going to actually become friends, especially when they figure out that their respective crushes are in a relationship and they team up to break them up and help each other get with their crush. It's definitely on the light hearted side, even though Darren Wang is playing a bad boy who is the leader of a gang and constantly getting in fights. He is more like a hurt puppy whose bark is worse than bite, which is honestly a role that Darren Wang excels at. <span><a name='more'></a></span><p></p><p>It's full of 90s nostalgia, even to the point where the whole movie is a flashback, as grown up Lin Zhenxin is looking back to the good old days and wondering how 18 year old her would think about current her. In this sense it's very coming of age, as we get to see her awkward transitions. It's actually got one of the better "makeover" scenes, as we see her trying to dress up for a date and looking very "90s teen trying really hard but doesn't know what she's doing," to buying fashion magazines with her crush's "ideal type" on the cover, to asking her older brother's girlfriend to give her advice. I actually love that girlfriend. She was great. Not sure why she's dating the jerk older brother, but we assume that his actual character is tainted by the Zhenxin's memories, since this is 100% from her perspective.</p><p>I actually really loved how the story was told from her perspective, from her memories, and we only see what she does, what she knows. And then as she knows more, we get a fuller picture of what happened and it is extremely touching. I really thought it was well done narratively. While it is naturally full of those coming of age/first love tropes, it stays fairly grounded. It's super cute, and I love the chemistry of the leads. They did a good job at all the stages. I highly recommend and I'm super glad I randomly found it and watched it.</p>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-389274154612422482021-02-03T13:36:00.005-08:002021-02-03T13:39:18.777-08:00436. Shanai Marriage Honey 社内マリッジハニー (2020) Japanese<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Itagaki Mizuki, Matsui Airi<br /></b><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Drama Rating: 7/10 Neck Score: A<br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5JkPnVJYzlA/YBsXD7H9kpI/AAAAAAAAnFg/Ebun4inNffAIxwTF3HDditJ1KlhWxRhwACLcBGAsYHQ/s566/Shanai_Marriage_Honey.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="566" height="283" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5JkPnVJYzlA/YBsXD7H9kpI/AAAAAAAAnFg/Ebun4inNffAIxwTF3HDditJ1KlhWxRhwACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h283/Shanai_Marriage_Honey.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Short and sweet perfectly describes this show. I hadn't watched a Japanese drama in a while, so when I saw all the praise I thought I would try it. It was exactly as they said. Super cute, with a couple who communicates well, and a heck of a lot of kissing. It's about a couple who get married after one meeting, for various reasons, and then we get to see them work it out into a really lovely marriage. They are super awkward at first, which is perfect, and then they slowly learn to open up, slowly get to know each other, and rather quickly get to the physical stuff because when you're already married and that attracted to each other, why not? But with every episode there is a newly discovered potential problem to figure out, but the great thing is that while they may not immediately just talk about it and try to solve it, they are constantly trying and they do talk if they can't figure it out right away. Basically this show is a cup of sunshine and a good short watch, especially if you need a huge dose of cute + skinship.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-84729770437770628992021-01-22T12:24:00.000-08:002021-01-22T12:24:27.923-08:00434. A Little Thing Called First Love 初恋那件小事 (2019) Chinese<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Lai Kuanlin, Zhao Jinmai, Wang Runze, Chai Wei</b><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Drama Rating: 8/10 Neck Score: A+</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LgtxC3F6CHc/YAsxZWJgS_I/AAAAAAAAnCU/BdJQAtDNWCc46gcSawPe4pxWXtoQngxXgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1080/66bbff1303134134996534794791348b.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="829" data-original-width="1080" height="308" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LgtxC3F6CHc/YAsxZWJgS_I/AAAAAAAAnCU/BdJQAtDNWCc46gcSawPe4pxWXtoQngxXgCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h308/66bbff1303134134996534794791348b.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><br />While I really like the high school to college dramas, they are all pretty formulaic. The male lead is always smart and popular, the female lead is awkward and has bad grades. Maybe she is openly chasing him, maybe it's a secret crush. Sometimes the male lead is a nice smart guy, sometimes he's a jerk. There will usually be a goofy friend or two who will make up the secondary couple. I swear there is usually a chubby best friend too. A third of the drama will be in high school and then it will reset in college, where suddenly the evil second leads will appear. I said reset because there was enough angst in high school to assume that they would just immediately get together in college, but because of second leads, misunderstandings, etc., it will instead drag out for forever and I usually get impatient. The male lead will always be the troop leader in the military training episodes, and will secretly help the female lead. A Little Thing Called First Love is no exception to this formula. But that doesn't mean it's not good in it's own right. It was very charming, and had just enough differences from this formula to make it more than worth it. And besides, I really do like this genre, so bring on those high school crushes.</div><span><a name='more'></a></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">So first off, Liang Younian is a nice guy. He's smart, but also soft and caring. Maybe even a little too self-sacrificing. If he has one problem, it's that he's not fully aware of his own feelings and even worse at properly expressing them. Xia Miaomiao was an adorable and likable character the whole time. But the bad foundation and teeth were a bit too much. However, I really liked how instead of a sudden make over, they had Xia Miaomiao "slowly" improve herself and get rid of the terrible "ugly" styling. I say "slowly" because while it took many episodes between each small improvement, the time to actually make the improvement was unrealistically short. It felt like it took only a week for her braces to magically fix her teeth, a day for her to recover from Lasik, and maybe 2 days for her product placement sunscreen to give her the perfect ivory complexion. At least her hairstyle gradually changed from poodle to perfectly straight so it wasn't a huge statement against curly hair. It seemed to be more to show her aging rather than attractiveness.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">So, my biggest complain, if any, is that it was dragged out to be 36 episodes when it could have been 20 and fine with me. They had built the attraction up so early, the chemistry was so thick I was ready for them to be dating by like episode 18. And then it didn't happen for forever. And we found out that even though he's like doing that "staring because she's too close thing" and being shocked at her touching his hand, etc., and then he think's she's just a little sister? I guess he's supposed to be the logical type who isn't good at figuring out his feels. Whatever. It really wasn't that bad, the problem was that when I was watching I think I was stressed about something and just not in a patient mood to have a romance dragged out that long. It was a drama remake of a movie, and maybe that's why it felt extra drawn out. I dunno. I just took a mini break and got in the right patient, slow burn, mindset. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">So, it was a nice take on this classic genre, because I literally liked everyone in it. No one was a jerk (except a minor character or two) and people made improvements, and it wasn't just about the romance (although 98% was) but there were self-improvement goals in there too. It's definitely one of the better dramas in this genre. Just be ready for the slow burn. Sloooooooow burn.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-7301719287342864542021-01-15T13:54:00.001-08:002021-01-15T13:54:56.926-08:00429. Princess Weiyoung 锦绣未央 (2016) Chinese<p><b>Tiffany Tang, Luo Jin, Vanness Wu, Mao Xiaotong, Li Xinai </b></p><p>Drama Rating: 6/10 Neck Score: A</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-m6YyU2_Qad4/YAIOHX_GnVI/AAAAAAAAnBY/pUjvoxf9-qUZQUzBW5tXfI360SwzZFRTQCLcBGAsYHQ/s483/%25E9%2594%25A6%25E7%25BB%25A3%25E6%259C%25AA%25E5%25A4%25AE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="206" data-original-width="483" height="170" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-m6YyU2_Qad4/YAIOHX_GnVI/AAAAAAAAnBY/pUjvoxf9-qUZQUzBW5tXfI360SwzZFRTQCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h170/%25E9%2594%25A6%25E7%25BB%25A3%25E6%259C%25AA%25E5%25A4%25AE.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Princess Weiyoung is just a hot mess of drama. It was a delightful hot mess, but also happened when I had my drama anxiety explosion that made me literally pause everything I was watching in favor of binge watching We Bare Bears. Sometimes the ridiculous drama where everyone is evil except the leads is fun and sometimes people's mothers are dying and I can't deal with that in the middle of a pandemic. However, after taking some time, I still came back and finished it, because it was ridiculous and I had to see the train wreck at the ending. It actually had a better ending that I expected. More... realistic, if you can believe that when everything was so over dramatic that it wasn't ridiculous. I just like that they didn't force a completely happy ending and were able to give us some tragedy that also wasn't forced. I had a whole thread on Twitter about this, because it was so 😲😲😅😅😂😂 that I had to shout out my feelings to the Twitterverse. You can probably get more details and spoilers from that thread then here. But at least you can know that it was crazy, dramatic, and I generally loved it, even then rolling my eyes and laughing every two seconds.<p></p><span><a name='more'></a></span><p>So, I started this show because I wanted something cheesy, and it had been popping up in my Netflix suggestions for like ever. I was struggling with other dramas at the time, so campy seemed perfect. And it was just that at the beginning. After I got past the first episode where she is constantly having her mouth covered as she shouts out people's names when they are killed, and her supporters drop one by one in attempts to get her to safety. Of course it starts with the massacre of her family. It is a revenge/political drama. Let's just say that her character grows a lot and at the start of the drama she isn't anywhere near her potential of awesomeness. She's the typical spoiled princess. Then she is the victim of a political massacre of her family. Then she befriends a girl abandoned by her family, who is then assassinated by that same family. So she assumes her identity and gets revenge. For her new dead friend, for her family, for her nation, and for everyone treating her like crap for like 60 episodes. JK, it's just 54, but still. The great thing is that all her woes stem from the same family. Convenient, right? It's nice to have one solid group of villains, even though they totally outnumber the good people.</p><p>We also have a lot of political intrigue with the battle for who is going to be the new crown prince. Will it be the son of the previous crown prince, who of course is already her true love? Or will it be his two uncles who are both clearly evil, just at varying levels of smartness. One real reason I decided to watch this is because Vanness Wu was in it. It's obvious from the start he's one of the villains, but it's also obvious that he's one of the best characters in the whole show. He's the puppet master type villain, and it is delightful to see him sit back and laugh at how stupid everyone else is. Of course he also gets annoying after a while, but mostly because this is the type of show where everyone either wants to kill the heroine or is in love with her. I liked him better when he wasn't in love with her. It's fine though, he stays sneaky and wicked the whole time, and he has a great evil smile. Quite sexy. Rawr.</p><p>So, if you like overdramatic historical Chinese dramas, this could be a fun watch for you. It's not the best, and sometimes was outright too much. However, I still enjoyed it most of the time, even if it meant I had to take it in doses, because you can't only take so much evil plotting. Especially when all the plots are almost the same and it's a wonder that they get away with it that many times. It's also a wonder that anyone takes them seriously, since she's able to prove herself innocent each time. A direct assassination would have made this show so much shorter, but no, they have to frame her for a various assortment of crimes, each worse than the last. That basically sums up the whole show. There are enough good people to like, and I even liked how evil the evil people were. I mean, they were enjoyably evil, so it made it fun to see how they ended up at last. Just a crazy show, so only watch it if you like that kind of thing.</p>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-18647707238961371062021-01-15T13:14:00.000-08:002021-01-15T13:14:56.067-08:00430. Flower of Evil 악의 꽃 (2020) Korean<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Lee Joon Ki, Moon Chae Won, Jang Hee Jin, Seo Hyun Woo, Kim Ji Hoon</b><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Drama Rating: 8/10 Neck Score: A+</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Vdm5ZxTdMtI/YAIFSDJndbI/AAAAAAAAnBM/5jJnXVf-_r4jcwRAh6Bl7C5dErLawts3wCLcBGAsYHQ/s906/2020060401000265000014651.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="906" data-original-width="640" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Vdm5ZxTdMtI/YAIFSDJndbI/AAAAAAAAnBM/5jJnXVf-_r4jcwRAh6Bl7C5dErLawts3wCLcBGAsYHQ/w283-h400/2020060401000265000014651.jpg" width="283" /></a></div>The premise was too good to pass, the cast was too good to pass, I was super excited to start this show. But still I waited to start it. Then I binged it until I caught up with it. It was so good and intense, I had a hard time not being able to just start the next episode. But sadly, it was my one drama I loved while I was being stressed out from everything, but having to stop and wait in the middle of a hugely dramatic climax made the stress of anticipation overwhelm me, and with everything else I suddenly was too stressed to watch it. Which is so interesting because if I had the ability at the time, I would have just binged watched it to the end. However, though it took several weeks of getting to a place where I could watch anything besides We Bare Bears, I finished it and it remained good until the end. Even though the last episode was an extreme change of pace. It was still good. And then I still too even longer to write this review because that is what last year did to me. Apologies.</div><span><a name='more'></a></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">So the previews were a bit misleading, but also not at the same time. It was meant to be this way, because it's a show about a detective who is married to a metal crafter, but then she starts investigating a series of murders, and suspecting that her husband is involved. You are not sure who to trust. Really, to watch it you just have to be okay with the fact that the male lead is definitely a psychopath and probably a serial killer too. It doesn't take long for him to be locking people in basements and threatening them, wearing the classic black hat/jacket combo, and clearly be full of lies and deception.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">However, the beauty of the show is that nothing is black and white, and there is a lot of gray area about people, their stories, and the past. It makes it interesting to see how the detective's nature of only believing what she can see both helps and hurts their relationship, because her eyes can be deceived, but she also will give him the benefit of doubt that most people wouldn't, based on how she sees him.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">This show was really just written for Lee Joon Ki. He loves to do those complicated and creepy roles. Beautifully creepy/scary. He does it well, especially as he turns the cute on and off as he turns the creepy off and on, and that just makes it all the better. Plus he has excellent chemistry with Moon Chae Won. They were so cute together, but also good at the complicated mistrusting scenes too.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Yes, there were times when I was filled with hate and rage, people were dying, people were manipulating, people were mistrusting, and being unfair. But the build of the show was fun, the portrayals of mental states beautifully and (as far as I could tell) decently done. So yes, I would 100% recommend, especially for those who like darker, psychological thrillers, who also don't mind a heavy emphasis on romance. It definitely is still about that.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-1615050881039227952020-11-15T11:13:00.001-08:002020-11-15T11:13:19.653-08:00428. Stranger (Secret Forest) 2 비밀의 숲 2 (2020) Korean<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Cho Seung Woo, Bae Doo Na, Choi Moo Sung, Jeon Hye Jin, Kim Young Jae, Lee Joon Hyuk, Park Sung Geun</b><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;">Drama Rating: 9/10 Neck Score: A</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--BZamrFqPt8/X7F9B9H4SbI/AAAAAAAAm28/9IitzvkFelUXdndTTLUkj7Jv5bFaA1EDgCLcBGAsYHQ/s992/AKR20200709065600005_01_i_P4.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="992" data-original-width="700" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--BZamrFqPt8/X7F9B9H4SbI/AAAAAAAAm28/9IitzvkFelUXdndTTLUkj7Jv5bFaA1EDgCLcBGAsYHQ/w283-h400/AKR20200709065600005_01_i_P4.jpg" width="283" /></a></div><a href="https://lndmmv.blogspot.com/2018/12/329-stranger-2017-korean.html" target="_blank">Stranger, or Secret Forest</a>, is one of the best dramas I have ever watched. So there was no way I wasn't going to watch the second season, albeit with some trepidation that it wouldn't live up to the first season. And while I didn't like it as much as the first season, it was still really good and of a similar quality. The biggest difference between the two shows was the focus, which actually flavored this season a lot. The overarching situation in this season was the battle between the police and prosecution for investigation rights. So it was even more political than normal, and it also made it so my two best friends didn't get to spend as much time being the power partners, since they were representing two different sides of a fight. This tainted the flavor of the show for me, because my favorite part of the show has always been the incredible and respectful partnership of Si Mok and Yeo Jin. I just wanted more of them teaming up and less of them being awkward around each other because they couldn't be on the same side. However, there was still enough of that to make me happy, and confident that they still had that partnership/friendship chemistry.</div><span><a name='more'></a></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I did wish a bit that I had rewatched the first season before watching it. At the time I didn't have time, but now I'm wondering why I didn't, haha. I thought I had remembered it well enough, but it seemed like everything that they references were the parts of the first season that I didn't care about as much or just didn't remember. The business drama plot, with the evil conglomerates pulling strings. This lead me to just being like: Am I supposed to know who this person is? What? That person was in last season? What are they even talking about? etc. Because of this, I had to look up a lot of things, which would have been easier had it been more fresh in my mind. But I have heard others say watching season 1 first wasn't necessary. I say it totally is, because there are so many relationships and plot points that just wouldn't make as much sense, or be as poignant if you don't have that background. Things pick up almost where they left off. Yes, it's been several years since the first season, but major plot points are in direct relation to season 1 and they don't take time to explain relationships that are already established in 1 either. Plus, season 1 is just so much better, so you'd be denying yourself a great blessing, because the first season is amazing. Season 2 is great, but it is better with the proper set up of the first season.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">So, yes, it was good. Definitely watch season 1 first. Season 1 is definitely better. But do I still hope they make a season 3? Heck yes! I feel like there is so much more they can do with these amazing characters, and I will definitely be there for it if it ever happens. There is so much depth to all the characters and so much commentary on how complicated society is, and that nothing is black and white, and that corruption can sneak in to even the most just of people.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-38855893843794390942020-11-13T23:10:00.002-08:002020-11-13T23:11:12.803-08:00426. Into the Ring 출사표 (2020) Korean<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Nana, Park Sung Hoon, Ahn Nae Sang, Yoo Da In, Han Joon Woo</b><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Drama Rating: 7/10 Neck Score: A</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WDUmr6PYMEY/X6-CH1KCKFI/AAAAAAAAm2w/MKIWy1sY_5sBHsOnknYpcuk-m_nE222WwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1563/NBCONTENTSMYLOVEKBS_70000000365161_20200615_20200615095300___EDITOR_01.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1563" data-original-width="1024" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WDUmr6PYMEY/X6-CH1KCKFI/AAAAAAAAm2w/MKIWy1sY_5sBHsOnknYpcuk-m_nE222WwCLcBGAsYHQ/w263-h400/NBCONTENTSMYLOVEKBS_70000000365161_20200615_20200615095300___EDITOR_01.jpg" width="263" /></a></div>I had to watch this one because I needed to see my psychopath being a male lead. He did a good job. I loved his chemistry with Nana. They had the friends thing down so great, especially when they were like opposites attract and complement, but they also transitioned to lovers well. Yeah, this is a romantic comedy. It's a political one too. Warning to all who don't like that type of drama. This is a story about a girl who goes from being a chronic civic complainer (you know the type that notify city all about all the lights out in town and potential hazards, etc) to running for city council to make both money and a difference. It's about smaller town politics (it still happens in the Seoul Metropolis, I believe, but in a suburb district) and the pettiness of politicians. Seriously, they acted like they were all in some high school clicks.</div><span><a name='more'></a></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">So, there are multiple things going on in this show, and it really has a lot of character development. The best part is that our female lead is so likable and keeps up her unconquerable, tenacious spirit the whole time, that even though most of the show things are not going her way and she has everyone hating on her like the petty politicians they are. She is still spunky, but the type to complain and binge eat when she is sick of it, and then keep going. She definitely gets mopey, but the show was never mopey. Maybe because her moping and trying to run away was always comedic and light hearted instead of soul crushing for the viewers. But that's not to say that it didn't still weigh heavy where appropriate and bring some tears every once in a while. Especially when everything is backed by the classic tragic accident.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">This all goes back to the overarching plot of the political corruption and pushing to build the Smart City project on the site of a hotel/resort thing that ended in a terrible accident that killed a lot of people and was placated by a memorial that was long forgotten. Now that the construction is beginning again, there are a whole lot of cans of worms trying to be kept unopened by the corruption that our girl has a talent for forcing open. The point to hopefully clean up some of the corruption. But there is always the problem of finding problems in places not expected and hopefully solutions as well. It's a good balance of goofy, realistic, and political, with plenty of heart, so that it was enjoyable to watch the whole time. I loved it.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-54582543470420205822020-11-13T13:47:00.004-08:002020-11-13T13:47:44.317-08:00424. It's Okay to Not Be Okay 사이코지만 괜찮아 (2020) Korean<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Kim Soo Hyun, Seo Ye Ji, Oh Jung Se</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Drama Rating: 8/10 Neck Score: A</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q9BobwwqiVI/X6792ApwFoI/AAAAAAAAm2k/qFiSl9M16gk2y5V9S_9-7UQkLfLQnfMfwCLcBGAsYHQ/s630/BF.22784016.1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="444" data-original-width="630" height="283" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q9BobwwqiVI/X6792ApwFoI/AAAAAAAAm2k/qFiSl9M16gk2y5V9S_9-7UQkLfLQnfMfwCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h283/BF.22784016.1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />It took me a while to get into this one, mostly because it needed a bit to fully set up the situation and characters, and then once it did, it was quite delightful. If you only give it maybe longer than you normally would, it picks up quite nicely. What I liked about it was that found family aspect, and opening yourself up to be okay with not being okay. None of the characters in this show is okay, even the ones who would not typically be accepted into a mental hospital, but that doesn't mean they are okay. Everyone has their struggles and needs to open up about what they are feeling and thinking.</div><span><a name='more'></a></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I really liked how every character was flawed and coming to terms with that. How all the relationships were a bit love/hate, even when it was mostly love. You don't always like the people you love and taking time to release those frustrations is important. So I loved how all the characters helped each other. Kang Tae helped Moon Young be more restrained, and Moon Young helped Kang Tae release his pent up emotions and actually do things for himself. Moon Young also helped Sang Tae take responsibility and be a good oppa and hyung. In the end, everyone had a lot of character growth and that was awesome. Even the side characters had plots that we all cared about.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">That doesn't mean there wasn't some crazy drama in it too. There definitely was. A lot of the trauma these characters were facing was stuff straight out of a horror film, with crazy murdering psychos, etc. But, it was handled much better than it could have been, with less rampant psychos on the loose and more mystery and suspense. Even with the crazy, there was a nice balance. It stayed a dark comedic drama (definitely not a romcom) the whole time, so the consistency was nice for me.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The actors they got were perfect. I've always loved Kim Soo Hyun and Seo Ye Ji, and they were really good picks for the crazy and the restrained. But hands down this show's MVP was Oh Je Sung who played Sang Tae with such compassion and believability that you forgot it was him and he was simply Moon Sang Tae. The rest of the cast and ensemble was no less good either. I loved pretty much everyone and appreciated their well developed characters and performances.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">While this might not be everyone's cup of tea, I thought it was well done and well worth it to see all their actors in their elements, and even just to have that moment when Kim Soo Hyun pushes his bangs off his forehead and you have that overwhelming wave of hotness knock you over. Haha. It has a little something for everyone, I think. I liked it a lot.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-81700031144807041932020-11-03T11:04:00.000-08:002020-11-03T11:04:20.697-08:00421. Love Designer 爱情高级定制 (2020) Chinese<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Dilraba Dilmurat, Huang Jingyu, Zhang Xinyu, Yi Da Qian, Hu Bing, Zheng Shui Jing<br /></b><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Drama Rating: 6/10 Neck Score: A+</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Xho53rp_cMs/X6GpfMmhs3I/AAAAAAAAm0g/_0vD1Kmd6g8rhiB9K-sCYM6GROcP4MMRQCLcBGAsYHQ/s374/Love_Advanced_Customization_drama_poster_2020.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="374" data-original-width="267" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Xho53rp_cMs/X6GpfMmhs3I/AAAAAAAAm0g/_0vD1Kmd6g8rhiB9K-sCYM6GROcP4MMRQCLcBGAsYHQ/w285-h400/Love_Advanced_Customization_drama_poster_2020.jpeg" width="285" /></a></div>Love Designer was an interesting show in the fact that I never loved it, but I never hated it enough to drop it. It was kind of meh, to be honest. I liked how it was about a bunch of adults who communicated pretty well and generally worked things out maturely, and were looking out for each other, putting their partner's needs before their own, not getting in the way of each other's careers, etc. But at the same time they also got caught up in really weird things, which cause random drama. But for the most part, since they were so mature and cool, it came off as really blasé some times, like they had to really did for ideas to make it dramatic and that they would then act out of character to make those situations work.<br /></div><span><a name='more'></a></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">So as I was watching it, I would be on and off. I would watch it, and like it, but then if something got inexplicably overdramatic, I'd be like "nah" for a while. Then it would never be as bad as I thought it was going to be, because they wrote everyone so chill/mature. They also didn't really have any true love triangles, because the second leads, if there even were any true second leads, were either not that big of a threat and gave up super fast, or they were the nicest people in the world and gave up super fast. Even the "villain" in the piece was a nice person who gave up super fast. Because I guess that's what happens when people actually reflect on what is going on and make changes for the better, and actually talk things out? Still, it made things strangely flat. I appreciated the maturity and conversations, but why set up things to be so dramatic to not follow through? I don't know, it made things, as I said, feel blasé.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I did like the character development of the little sister. She was a total angry young girl, blasting her music and shutting herself out, but then was able to actually develop a good relationship with her brother, because she made real friends and was able to communicate well through the good influence of her brother's girlfriend and her nephew, who becomes her best friend. I actually really love that the main couple's relationship is actually developed through their similarities of being "single parents" to their high school aged relations. Zhou Fang was watching her nephew so he could have some stability during high school while his parents were travelling for their work, and Song Lin had been raising his little sister since their parents died. Being able to bond over parenting, and him seeing how good she was with his sister, helped them form that connection that then lead to him pursuing her for real. Although he probably leaned on that relationship too much, but whatever.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">It was an okay drama. As in, I liked it ok, but I was never passionate about it, and just watched it when there was nothing else to watch, or just to finish it. I never hated it, but it did take me a while to finish it, and then even longer to write about it. So, I guess that says something about it. Everyone looks pretty, so there is that. But there is one thing I must say. Because I did take a lot of breaks while watching it, I was rudely reminded every time I'd pick it up of how much I hated that everyone had the same stupid song as their ringtone. Why?!?!?!?! Why do you all have that same stupid clip of the same stupid song as your ring tone! YOU ARE NOT ALL THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD! JUST PUT YOUR FREAKING PHONES ON SILENT NOW!!!! Yeah, if there was anything I hated about the show, it was that song clip. Hated that song by the end of it.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">So maybe watch it if you are a big fan of Johnny or Dilraba. They are both really pretty in it. But maybe don't watch it if you hate repetitive ring tones or dramatic without reason only to be resolved really easily plots. It was weird, because it felt both organic and forced... so yeah? Shrugs.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-4358812205685191862020-10-02T14:59:00.000-07:002020-10-02T14:59:36.735-07:00Korean Movie Night: Along with the Gods: The Last 49 Days 신과함께-인과 연 (2018) Korean<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Ha Jung Woo, Ju Ji Hoon, Kim Hyang Gi, Ma Dong Seok, Kim Dong Wook</b><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Movie rating: 8/10 Neck score: A<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LWbhYpJlLbo/X3eiDMjApzI/AAAAAAAAmdc/TgINvLryYGErkBfoxciSQHIAqIYvbOz1gCLcBGAsYHQ/s374/Along_with_the_Gods-The_Last_49_Days_%2528film%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="374" data-original-width="261" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LWbhYpJlLbo/X3eiDMjApzI/AAAAAAAAmdc/TgINvLryYGErkBfoxciSQHIAqIYvbOz1gCLcBGAsYHQ/w279-h400/Along_with_the_Gods-The_Last_49_Days_%2528film%2529.jpg" width="279" /></a></div><br />Once upon a time, back in August, I actually got to see my friends in person and we had a Korean Movie Night, complete with Korean take-out, and finally watched the 2nd installment in the <a href="https://lndmmv.blogspot.com/2020/07/korean-movie-night-along-with-gods-two.html" target="_blank">Along with the Gods</a> series. Along with the Gods: The Last 49 Days picks up right where the first left off, focusing on the little brother. It also focuses on the backstories of who our three reapers were back when they were alive and why they were put on a team together. We also have the addition of Ma Dong Seok to the cast, which is always a win. He's the best.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Because it's an immediate continuation, they didn't spend as much time building the world and showing the judgements, they focused a lot more on the in between moments. This time with Gang Rim guiding the little brother while the other two tried to get the House God (Ma Dong Seok) to allow them to ascend the old grandpa. He also happens to know who they were since he was their reaper, so they are also focused on learning about their past, since Gang Rim still has their memories. Once again, Ju Ji Hoon was hilarious, especially when we saw him learning about who he was in life. I loved how the past reveal fleshed out their characters, but also built their relationships more.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I really loved Kim Dong Wook as the brother. He was such an interesting character because he was so chill and calm, but then also had the potential to become a vengeful spirit, since he had already gone that far in the first movie. But he was logical and trusting that he turned into more of a councilor to Gang Rim, especially as he was observant enough to see that this wasn't so much about him, but about what had brought the three reapers to this point. Another good bonus was more of Lee Jung Jae as Yeomra, he pulls off that look so well.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">So the third installment is scheduled for 2021, so perhaps a review for that will be out sometime after then. I hope so, I'm down for it.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-76255792670039976282020-08-04T16:08:00.002-07:002020-08-04T16:08:47.475-07:00427. My Unfamiliar Family (아는 건 별로 없지만) 가족입니다 (2020) Korean<b>Jung Jin Young, Won Mi Kyung, Choo Ja Hyun, Han Ye Ri, Shin Jae Ha, Kim Ji Suk</b><div><b><br /></b></div><div>Drama Rating: 8/10 Neck Score: A+</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-buohLOj0mes/Xynp-6KA61I/AAAAAAAAl8w/GrzzekofXIkT_k1z_8edBSVul_mDHHkSQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1695/c4132907ebd95a9becad8c6a4f523d96.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1695" data-original-width="1200" height="410" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-buohLOj0mes/Xynp-6KA61I/AAAAAAAAl8w/GrzzekofXIkT_k1z_8edBSVul_mDHHkSQCLcBGAsYHQ/w290-h410/c4132907ebd95a9becad8c6a4f523d96.jpg" width="290" /></a></div>This drama felt like one of those 50 episode weekend family dramas that are full to the max with drama and follow multiple different story lines and couples. It had all that, except it was only 16 episodes long. Which was awesome, actually, since that meant that it stuck to only the important drama and left out the filler drama. It still focused on the whole family and their different problems, as well as their problems together. The whole premise is that even though they are family, they don't know everything about each other. In fact, they are the poster family for miscommunication and even no communication. The whole show is a lesson on how not communicating with your family and loved ones will lead to miscommunication, with is a poison that can ruin even the closest families. The beautiful thing is that it also shows the power of communication and how that builds relationships, and even creates families.</div><span><a name='more'></a></span><div><br /></div><div>So, this family is super dysfunctional. The mom and dad have been indifferent or fighting for as long as the maknae has remembered. The middle sister hasn't talked to the oldest sister for five years because of an argument over her breakup. Then the mom announces she wants a marriage graduation. The dad doesn't seem to love that idea, but seems angry at life in general. He is a truck driver with a middle school education. He takes off, leaving the mom to announce it, and then shows up in the hospital after a hiking accident... with amnesia. Haha. I don't mind amnesia when it's part of the main plot. Just so long as it's not a cop out last minute dramatic addition. In this case, it sent him back to the happy times when they were 22 and maybe in love. It was the catalyst to opening the communication that had been closed for so long and let us and them get to the root of the problem- what had happened to them, leading them up to the antagonistic point of marriage graduation?</div><div><br /></div><div>I loved how it was paced. It really peeled back the onion of what had happened as well as the levels of drama and crap that was going on. It was a steadily increasing level of dramatic, like a closet slowly opening with a few things falling out until the door just dumped open with all the skeletons. So much happened that it sometimes felt like there had to be 50 episodes to fit it all in, but because it was all balanced between characters and timed so well, it never got too much or too overwhelming. I also really cared about all the characters so that I wasn't like: oh no, it's the side plot I don't care about. I cared about all the plots and each family member.</div><div><br /></div><div>If there was a time that I was like: nope, I'm done with this character, it was with the VP storyline. I am just in love with Kim Ji Suk, so I thought he took up way too much time and he obviously wasn't as good as Kim Ji Suk so... And now that I started talking about Kim Ji Suk, I will just continue. He was sooooooo attractive in this. He played the best friend who you secretly love so well that I was getting all the flutters and heart thumps right along with our girl. Seriously though, he rocked it. And I love that he wasn't just there for her, but was generally just supporting her whole family, and so genuinely, that probably exponentially increased his attractiveness too. I could (and probably should) write a whole post about how Kim Ji Suk just keeps making me fall for him over and over. He's got sexy powers!</div><div><br /></div><div>I honestly was all about the parents' romance too. They put me through all the feels. I loved how complicated it was, and also how simple. It certainly showed how things can go bad, turn around, and the deeper than just love moments that brings couples and families together. The whole family was like that. They were so good as siblings and parents who know each other like family, but then also don't know each other as well as they think. That there are surprises and hurt that can only come from your family was both painful and beautiful to watch. I was super invested in them all.</div><div><br /></div><div>I love it, I'm glad it was only 16 episodes, because I binged it pretty fast. It was so good. Beautiful, heavy, all the feels, but ultimately made you feel good like a family drama should. I highly recommend it.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-16432716845662866672020-07-28T11:39:00.001-07:002020-07-28T11:43:26.250-07:00Korean Movie Night: Along With the Gods: The Two Worlds 신과함께-죄와 벌 (2017) Korean<b>Ha Jung Woo, Cha Tae Hyun, Ju Ji Hoon, Kim Hyang Gi, Kim Dong Wook, Lee Jung Jae</b><div><br /></div><div>Movie rating: 8/10 Neck score: A<b><br /></b><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-08b1VEqgb9U/XyBsGskPhDI/AAAAAAAAl7o/ZiOpzP2yHycRRNHp6XYYauUc2w0cbLENQCLcBGAsYHQ/s376/%25EC%258B%25A0%25EA%25B3%25BC%25ED%2595%25A8%25EA%25BB%2598_%25EC%25A3%2584%25EC%2599%2580_%25EB%25B2%258C.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="376" data-original-width="264" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-08b1VEqgb9U/XyBsGskPhDI/AAAAAAAAl7o/ZiOpzP2yHycRRNHp6XYYauUc2w0cbLENQCLcBGAsYHQ/w281-h400/%25EC%258B%25A0%25EA%25B3%25BC%25ED%2595%25A8%25EA%25BB%2598_%25EC%25A3%2584%25EC%2599%2580_%25EB%25B2%258C.jpg" width="281" /></a></div>Along with the Gods: The Two Worlds is the first installment in a series of movies that all have to do with a team of reapers helping souls through their judgement in the different hells in their first 49 days of being dead. The reapers have a further stake in this because if they help enough paragons they will earn a chance to also pass judgement and be reincarnated as well. The Two Worlds follows the path of Kim Ja Hong (Cha Tae Hyun) who was a fire fighter and predicted to be a paragon. I really liked how it brought up how complicated a human's life is, even when they seem to be a paragon of virtue, constantly saving lives and acting selflessly. I also really loved how they portrayed the different trials and hells, especially since each god of hell was a fabulous cameo with an equally fabulous costume. It was fun to recognize each god and get excited to see who was next. They were all awesome. Also, the prosecutors were hilarious. The dynamic between the three reapers was super fun too. The mysterious and cool reaper, Gang Rim (Ha Jung Woo), who actually remembers his past (I'm sure we're going to learn even more in the next movie) is like the dad (or hyung/oppa) of the group. Hae Won Maek (Ju Ji Hoon) is the punk uncle/younger brother, who likes to argue and complain, but they all will protect the donsaeng Duk Choon (Kim Hyang Gi) at all costs. It was a funny action packed trip, as they tried to unravel the knots of what was happening and what had happened, so they could defend their paragon to his reincarnation. It had great effects, action, and of course made us cry with all the feels. All the FEELS! Why are they also making me laugh while I'm crying, dang it! It was good.</div></div><div><br /></div><div>I am really excited for when we watch the next installment, The Last 49 Days. I also expect I won't want to wait for the expected 3rd installment, which is supposed to happen next year. Let's hope it still does.</div>MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-39490175937834800732020-07-17T15:40:00.001-07:002020-07-17T15:40:22.622-07:00425. Oh My Baby 오 마이 베이비 (2020) Korean<b>Jang Na Ra, Go Joon, Park Byung Eun, Jung Gun Joo</b><br />
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Drama Rating: 8/10 Neck Score: A<br />
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I knew I had to watch this show when it was first announced because 1. Jang Na Ra, 2. Go Joon (I loved him so much in <a href="https://lndmmv.blogspot.com/2019/04/335-fiery-priest-2019-korean.html" target="_blank">The Fiery Priest</a>!), and 3. Park Byung Eun (he's seriously rocked everything I've seen him in). I think I've watched almost all of Jang Na Ra's dramas. She's one of my favorites. She's sooooo good and so pretty! But I put off watching this one right away because I knew it was going to hit me in the feels just like that episode of New Girl where Cici finds out her eggs are drying up. I guess sometimes I do worry that kind of stuff as I continue my single, career woman life. Plus kids are super important to me even if I don't have any myself, so I get it. It was just what I predicted. Super cute, funny, and made me cry almost every episode. Maybe I didn't predict just how much it would make me cry. Everyone was perfect too, the acting was so spot on.<br />
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It's not just a show about a woman who's nearing the end of her prime who wants a baby really bad so she's on the look for a baby daddy. It's also about infertility (male and female), family structure, single parenthood, women in the workplace, postpartum depression, and pretty much every other topic that relates to a 39 year old woman and her acquaintances. It was super relatable, hard, and wonderful. It had really good romance in it too. I'm all about the older and more mature romances these days (I was almost annoyed at the 23 year olds in the show for being so immature, haha), so I was bound to love this one. It was all the feels (both good and bad) and filled with happiness. I also liked that while it had a time gap at the end (I hate those so much) it was only 3 mouths which seems realistic and manageable, even if it's still stupid. And longer than that and I would have had stronger words against it.<br />
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So it's not super lighthearted or everything. It's pretty heavy. Real topics, real characters, real struggles, and lots of good stuff. Just be prepared to cry with them and feel all the feelings, because it puts you through like all of them. You will probably laugh and cry in the same episode and not too far apart. But it's really good, has a solid cast, and it pretty tightly written. I loved it.MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-57928494376517183652020-07-17T14:54:00.002-07:002020-07-17T14:54:58.802-07:00423. The Love Equations 致我们甜甜的小美满 (2020) Chinese<b>Simon Gong, Liu Ren Yu, Li Ge Yang, Julio Wan Yan, An Yong Chang, Gao Qiu Zi</b><br />
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Drama Rating: 7/10 Neck Score: A<br />
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This completes all of the current dramas based on books by Zhao Qian Qian, the previous two being <a href="https://lndmmv.blogspot.com/2019/12/357-love-so-beautiful-2017-chinese.html" target="_blank">A Love So Beautiful</a> and <a href="https://lndmmv.blogspot.com/2019/11/356-put-your-head-on-my-shoulder-2019.html" target="_blank">Put Your Head on My Shoulder</a>. While I loved them all, I think this one ranks slightly below Put Your Head on My Shoulder, with A Love So Beautiful as third. Not that my ranking them was that important, I just felt like it. All of them have the same basic premise, with a smart stoic boy who falls for a spunky girl. But why knock a proven fun plot, I'm super into that trope. The reason this one only hits second place is that I really dislike misunderstanding breakups and while this one wasn't the worst I've seen, the year gap soured me just enough. It might also have to do with me watching PYHOMS first... maybe. See those reviews for more details though. But ultimately it was super cute, the couple had lots of chemistry, and I was very invested in everyone's happiness and binged watched the whole thing very fast.<br />
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I really liked the characters in this for the most part. They were all really straightforward, and you could see them growing. They all started out pretty immature as freshmen, but you could see them grow through the story. I loved how obsessed with detective Zhou Xiao was, and how Fan Zhou found ways to get to know her, get closer to her, and even watch her thrive as he fell for her. Like the rest of these shows, he smoothly became one of her friend circle through his quiet and determined maneuvers. It's like plotting, but nicely? He's chasing her from like episode 1, but since he's the quiet type, it's subtle and sneaky, haha. Zhou Xiao is pretty clueless, and has a weird criminal obsession with forensic scientists (his major) and even made one the villain/main character in her story. This makes her fascinated and terrified of him at the same time.<br />
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Somethings that this drama really wins at includes: Simon Gong literally being a personified puppy dog. I certainly couldn't resist those puppy stares he made at her, silently adoring. A second couple that is pretty compelling too. I didn't think I was going to like the roommate/badminton star. He was so full of himself and cocky, but he strangely turned into one of my favorite people. He was really good at putting his foot in his mouth, but he was also a super sweetie. I also super loved the friendships that were developed. The dorm sisters were the best. The way they supported each other, called each other, and were ready to fight for each other was awesome. The fact that one of the early frustrations of the main couple's romance was her picking her roommates over him is awesome and adorable, especially since he learned to help support them too, or at least let her do her thing.<br />
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The only problems I really have with it was the misunderstanding, but more of how it was resolved. A year seemed like much, like how could they come back from that? That bitch was basically the worst, especially since he never gave her anything to work with and was constantly rejecting her from the start. I also thought the very end was annoying. I liked how everything wrapped up, but at the graduation ceremony? Whatever. It was chaos, which is probably fine, but it bugged me a bit. It was a little like the end of <a href="http://lndmmv.blogspot.com/2014/01/84-it-started-with-kiss-2006-taiwanese.html" target="_blank">It Started With a Kiss</a> with the role reversal wedding which was supposed to be funny but just felt too weird and forced to me.</div>
MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-13400682299950127512020-07-14T12:43:00.002-07:002020-07-14T12:43:35.806-07:00422. Mystic Popup Bar 쌍갑포차 (2020) Korean<b>Hwang Jung Eum, Yook Sung Jae, Choi Won Young</b><br />
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Drama Rating: 9/10 Neck Score: A+<br />
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Oh my heart, this show was so good! The feels! Not just for the main plot and characters, but feels for all the people whose grudges they settled. It was just so sweet and funny! It's about a kid who has the power to open people's hearts. This means that when anyone touches him, they start spilling the beans, all their inner emotions, and he has to deal with their emotional dump on him. But that also means that anyone he tries to date will do the same, so all he wants is to be loved, or a family. Because he was abandoned by his parents, real and adopted, for the same reason. Then he meets the two owners of a pop-up tent bar, who specialize in settling grudges. Wol Ju's punishment for her past sins is to settle the grudges of like 10,000 (or was it 100,000?) people before her 500 years of punishment are up. She does this through dreams with the help of some water from the afterlife that helps her bridge the gap between the two worlds. She is assisted by Manager Gwi, who is supposed to be supervising her, but is more like helping her while getting bossed around. Kang Bae is enlisted to help them, since he can get people to open up so easily, because time is running short.<br />
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I love that is plays like a serial, with each episode being about a specific customer and helping their grudge, but also giving us a bit more into the complicated backstory of these people. As we learn more of the story, we see how complicated it is. How it is not so simple as to what the past sins were, as well as things not being what they seemed. And then the feels come the more you get to know everyone and everything. So many feels.<br />
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I absolutely loved the cast dynamic and the portrayals of the underworld, etc. It's a lovely blend of past and modern, since everyone has been around for 500 years, but then you see them updated to modern technology and styles, but still with hints of the past. It is definitely what I would call a found family drama, since you have more emphasis on familial relationships than just romance, although there is definitely romance too. Although it's heavy on the comedy as well, it will make you cry every episode.<br />
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I knew I had to watch it when it had both Choi Won Young 😍 and Hwang Jung Eum. I love her and feel compelled to watch pretty much everything she's in. Add to that Yook Sung Jae and the rest of the remarkable case and it was a no brainer. I also don't really regret starting it later than I meant to, because I definitely binge watched it with relish and still caught up to it to watch the finale "live." However, that accentuated how short it was. It being 12 episodes was probably a good thing plot wise. I never felt like it was rushed or draggy. It was just perfect in pacing. However, I loved it so much that I would have willingly watched it for much longer. However, I love a tightly written story, and this is just that. It's quality stuff. It also felt like all the roles were written just for these actors, they all fit them so well. I'm glad that Choi Won Young is getting more love now, as <a href="https://twitter.com/lizabr3ff" target="_blank">Lizabreff</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/ccccatie" target="_blank">Curdy</a> are also now obsessed with him. Yes!MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2267386399970293957.post-81220269510831588222020-07-14T11:17:00.000-07:002020-07-14T11:17:35.235-07:00420. Good Casting 굿캐스팅 (2020) Korean<b>Choi Gang Hee, Yoo In Young, Kim Ji Young, Lee Sang Yeob, Lee Jun Young, Lee Jong Hyuk</b><br />
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Drama Rating: 7/10 Neck Score: A+<br />
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Good Casting was a good combination of awesome spy action, comedy, and romance. It is the girl power spy show that isn't afraid to just be silly. The best part is that while all the women are off being bad-A spies and getting things done, the dudes all think they are in some kind of romantic comedy. But even though the ladies are pretty awesome, they are also pretty flawed, which I know made some people struggle at the beginning. This isn't a show about perfect, top notch spies. It's about a bunch of misfit spies who were thrown together to not get the job done, but they get it done anyway, even with all the slapstick.<br />
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Baek Chan Mi (Choi Gang Hee) is a loose cannon who lets her temper get the best of her, making huge mistakes. She lost the target and endangered a team member last time, so is determined to not to lose him this time. Hwang Mi Soon (Kim Ji Young) is basically retired and living the life of an ahjumma. She is rusty at best, but is still crazy good at undercover, in spite of her being past her prime. Im Ye Eun (Yoo In Young) is a white agent (think completely green). She's been working for the NIS for a while, but has kept out of the field and worked support and tech. This is her first field assignment. She is also a single mom. They are all put on a team to catch Michael, an elusive international technology thief/dealer. Michael managed to escape and kill Chan Mi's teammate last time, and this team is the last resort.<br />
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They are sent undercover to a tech company where the information is being stolen (sold). There are several candidates for the dirty dealers. The company CEO: Yoon Seok Ho, who used to be tutored by Chan Mi back in the day (and was totally in love with her), the hallyu star Kang Woo Won, and the company's vice president. Then you throw Seok Ho's ex-wife into the mix, and that the NIS director is clearly dirty as well, and the fact that the team leader, Dong Gwan Soo (Lee Jong Hyuk), also used to date Chan Mi, so there is added awkwardness there too. So basically there are so many people with their own agendas and plots, and the whole show is a hot mess. Especially since our ladies are very unconventional, make tons of mistakes, and are constantly being caught up in the romantic drama that they don't have time or attention span for.<br />
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Things that I loved: the fight sequences. They were very well choreographed. Baek Chan Mi is slightly crazy, which makes for some really good fight scenes, because she gives all to every fight. I love how there were running jokes about people going to physical therapy and dealing with the trauma of fighting Baek Chan Mi. I also really loved how sentimental all the dudes were. They had no idea they were in a spy/action drama. They keep trying to be sweet to the ladies and it would usually go right over their heads. I also really loved all of the ridiculous disguises that Dong Gwan Soo came up with. They were so fake it was hilarious. There was a reason he was on the misfits team. I also absolutely loved Secretary Byeon, aka Seok Ho's bodyguard. He, like the rest of the show, was the perfect blend of comedy and bad-A. He was so competent, but then ended up in all the ridiculous situations with his boss. At least he knew they were in a spy show, unlike his boss, who took a while to figure out that.<br />
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Basically, don't expect the show to be serious. There is so much slap stick and ridiculousness in the show that it almost surprises you when all the sudden there is action, tense situations, and people being assassinated/murdered/killed. You know, spy stuff. But it was just what I needed right now. Silly, good, and action packed. It made me very happy.MarlubsGDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16994980479692235296noreply@blogger.com