Reviews

Wonderful drama indeed

First of all this is the first time i'm watching Korean drama (1 hr per eps.) with 50+ episodes, i usually watch
Chinese drama i.e. 40-50 episodes (50 min per eps.), i found out that Kdrama that long will not
inspired me to watch another 30 to 40+ episodes in the future, i'll stop eatching long episodes kdrama
completely because from what i know it's that 2013-14 where producing drama that stream straight online
isn't a thing yet so they produce solely for television purposes (Nation wide & selected countries TV network),
the longer the episodes the more the story gets extended. EMPRESS KI is based from real life person but it only
adapted as a structure to create the theme of the plot since EMPRESS KI story lack details during that time about her
life and mostly mythical stories. Thats the reason this drama got a chance to extend the twisting storyline for the
audiences, there's many unexplain miracle that happened dramatically just for the sake of entertainment. NGL this drama
worth my time, EMPRESS KI/NYANG is well written character, WANG YO was the most perfect character and the weak EMPEROR,
NYANG & WANG YO is the perfect couple but not per-fate couple, NYAN want to help WANG YO to get back his
throne and defeat the old regent villain at the palace but little did she know her decisionback fired on her, she got her baby then thought
it died from falling and found out later soon he died from poison arrow, now that's a depress for NYANG & WANG YO
... EMPEROR is the most pathetic character in the drama, he maybe smart for like 8% in his screentime but 92%, he's a
silly, stupid, childish, cowardly man ever. BATOLU/YON love WANG YO only one-sided which is very sad. Also spoiler alert, everyone dies
in the drama and only NYAN herself was there. even though i liek WANG YO character but the death of EMPEROR was definitely too sad.
The drama synopsis explain that NYAN true love is EMPEROR... which is partially wrong. She admired WANG YO but soon she like him romantically
whereas She only want to be close to EMPEROR because she want to become EMPRESS to avenge those who killed her
love ones and to save her homeland nothing more nothing less, of course she did care, norture, respect & trust him but not love him passionately, we
only see she truly love him when WANG YO died and she move on and then the moment she reveal her love to EMPEROR
he died peacefully.

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VINTAGE KDRAMA FEELS !!!

This show is has every element that all classic dramas has ,

First of all , the freaking chemistry between main leads , be it Hae jo and jo jae mi or jo jae mi and heung or heung and hae jo.
Also , the Bong suk and hae jo scenes were very well made and enjoyed each moment of them.

I really liked it , it's been a long time since i being watched a kdrama this real quick.

This show remained me why l like watching kdrama : ) . Thank you! Mr Plankton.

The male lead Hae Jo :

Bro has fun ( jae mi ) , brother ( heung) , luck ( bong) , friend (kkari) and in the end he, himself and his dream !!! So this has to be
a good ending drama for sure,..

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im glad i didnt ghost this show

there's not much im gonna say that would be helpful to a person looking to start this show or not. but I will say that it took me on a journey that i will always be grateful for. through the perspectives of people who still live amongst us in every form but physical, to how love and family, even platonic and found can be home. one of the best shows produced by GMMTV, and one of the best shows ive seen.
p'dome-the legend this man is, and the glamorous evil that resides in him- thank you for creating the glorious bliss this show is. i really really hope to see more of your work, to watch the twitter rambles (and the fires you set with evil laughter in the background).

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Beginning was extremely promising BUT

I have so looked forward to this series ZL is not my favourite actor but i think she is a good actor. i do like Liu Yuning very much. i started this series and really enjoyed the beginning, the story, the acting, it looked all set to be a brilliant series. However we are almost halfway through and it has become very messy and disjointed, which is really disappointing. Perhaps i should have waited until all the series had been aired and then watched it.
The script and the directing are failing the actors , who are doing a great job given the difficulties, i sincerely hope that they get it together for the remaining episodes. A masterpiece it could have been, it will be interesting to see if they can rescue this drama. I have seen better this year.

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its got a sad ending

So it had a very good story line I enjoyed it sooo much I literally finished it in 2 days. I’m very happy that the episodes released quickly because for other dramas they release every week and that really bores me. The casting was perfect there wouldn’t have been anyone else I would’ve wanted to see play hae-jo or Jae-mi. Woo do hwan’s emotions were perfect when he cried it made me want to cry aswell. Also with Lee yoo-mi her emotions were perfect aswell. As we could see her sadness and anger at the same time. I love how we could see a portrayal of real life issues for example some people have parental issues and it was perfectly written in the show. In addition gi-ho and ju-ri were very perfect too. For example I love how gi-ho stayed loyal all that time even though he was having near death experiences. The ending was very sad and emotional however I think it was written so well. Because we always expect the main characters to never die and cos hae-jo did die it was not expected at all,as we saw before he died it was going so well.

but yeah I really did enjoy this show, I hope more are made like this. big appreciation to the writers,producers,actors and all the other people who helped in the making of it.

Another thing I have to say is I was in love with how the OST matched the show perfectly. whoever picked it did so well

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disapointing try at a short kdrama

8eps at 1 hr ea. Is it still kdrama if it isnt 16 eps long? If misunderstandings, anxieties, trips and subplots do not pile up in baroque patterns? Honestly I am not sure, because I love that exuberance so much. The only std. kdrama feature here are several lively side romances although one lonely and very very cute bachelor is inexplicably left on the side.

This whole piece is so gentle and relaxed...I dont think you would call this series a tone poem, exactly, because there is finally at the end a little development -- which cant be discussed as it would be a spoiler.

On the other hand, a great deal of time relative to the size of the show was spent on the slowly carefully negotiated change from their high school relationship into an adult love. The ML character was a bit dull but sweet, which works as an anodyne to an anxious woman.

I love Chae Jong Hyeop's fancy acting turn here as a big sad bear of a man. I love the belted old blue jean look.

I rooted for Kim Soo Hyun, but it was hard to see yet another FL who is unable to express what she wants clearly, constantly runs away when she should move forward and makes herself and her lover miserable. KSH doesnt write the scripts but its a shame that this one did not give her much leeway to stretch herself as an actress.

Sign me up on the justice for Sang-Pil wagon.

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brilliant acting

How to romance your long-time boss and crush? So many boss and employee/intern romances, BL or hetero, yet this stands out. The back and forth of dialogue without an intrusive soundtrack is such a pleasure when watching jdrama. I was afraid that the feelings of these men in suits would not be respectfully treated (cupcake?). A ten-year age gap, a respectful relationship in a small office, and somehow the younger Togawa manages to give his friend and boss the gentlest and most patient push needed, to wake him up to love. Brilliant acting. My favorite shot -- Nozue's face sideways in bed, lit up by the screen as he reads missed texts from his friend -- the years drop away, his eyes and lips glow.

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goofy and tender

BL, 12 eps at 45mins ea. A great binge. Sweet Huai'en and Xiabao overcome personal and political problems, includes some redflag beginnings, NOT PG13. An adequate fantasy production with good depth in characterization, a little underbudgeted, but overall a good sign of hope for future productions in the newer forms of BL.

Refreshing. I think the balance worked -- chinese plot and costumes, tenderness and moral elevation of Thai-style dialogue and acting (in Mandarin, so Taiwanese actors?) and a smodge of kdrama goofiness.

It started off with a note of midcentury camp (situational then and now to our currently absurd world politically)....then a tasteful moment of tenderness and we were in a 10Star swoon by ep 3!

Enough said, addiction gears engaged. And yes, the show is pretty funny in the charming way of romedies, watch Wang Yun Kai tripping over his long skirts! The swordfighting is really terrible, just skip it..

first posted sept 2024 on Viki

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A (very) funny and exciting journey into Dong Jae's story

I simply loved it, from beginning to end!

Dong Jae is the kind of character that captured our hearts; it's impossible to hate him, and that's how he went from a supporting character in "Stranger" to the main character in this spin-off.

If you liked "Stranger" and plan to watch this drama, keep one thing in mind: the style is completely different. THIS IS NOT "Stranger" season 3, nor is it intended to be; is's a spin-off from a very different character. Here, the cases are neither important nor mysterious, and everything revolves around the discussion that the name of the drama itself brings up: is Dong Jae, after all, good or bad?

The drama was much lighter to watch than "Stranger", and has many comedic elements; even though I'm not a big fan of comedies and prefer thriller dramas, I still loved it and had a lot of fun with Dong Jae's adventures - his inner monologues are the best!

And here comes the spoiler:

******

I loved the ending!!
I would have been a little disappointed if Dong Jae had left the Prosecutor's Office and become a lawyer, which I thought might happen after SDJ and KWC met.

However, the ending surprised me positively: Dong Jae was finally punished for his actions. Although I would still like to see him as a prosecutor, the idea of ​​a "team" of corrupt people to hunt down more corrupt people was simply brilliant. And it's SDJ's chance to redeem himself for his mistakes from the past.

I would love a sequel (whether it's a 2nd season of SDJ or a 3rd of "Stranger"), and the ending left the stage ready for that.

About the cast:
Lee Jun Hyuk is simply perfect as Seo Dong Jae, once again.
And I loved the characters of Jung Woon Sun and Baek Sun Ho.

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Combo hero-coming-of-age, wuxia, espionage and imperial intrigue.

Good watch. Prob'ly shot in 2018/9, 46 episodes -- only Part One of story! Combo hero-coming-of-age, wuxia, espionage and imperial intrigue. Many truly talented actors as supporting characters creates central focus on balancing nodes of power. The hero Zhang Ruo Yun/Fan Xian has excellent very masculine charisma and utter fidelity to his beloved.

A giant spy agency operating in the bowels of brutalist concrete architecture is balanced by the brilliant Chen Dao Ming as Dad the emperor puttering around with archery in slouchy white robes in his man-cave study, controlling his fractious family and state from afar. Fan Xian's story ties together this portion like the red string of fate.

Out of the city next, the fights get better (to my ignorant eye?) and the hero matures, fighting off various ladies' romantic overtures, and physical dangers, with aplomb, acting as ambassador to a northern country. Lots of cool 9th level masters and very dangerous enemies, and Fan Xian's faction starts to take shape.

To me the feminine rulers he grapples with in a northern enemy country seem like a cynical nod to then-fashion by the author or director (I am watching this during pride month which makes it feel particularly insulting) -- the northern emperor, obviously a woman, unacknowleged by plot (weird), is sismancing a great female martial artist, and then later suddenly one of the more politically ambiguous characters back home develops a bromancy henchman.

first posted July 2024 on Viki

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Big budget, lushly scored, epic romance all 10star.

17 episodes at 1 hr each puts this in classic weekend kdrama territory. Big budget, lushly scored, epic romance all 10star. The script is at least a 12. Unique use of the reincarnation theme. Normally Re-I is played for laughs or to solve a mystery. Here it is used as a frame for healing trauma -- the romantic tragic deaths of a pair of lovers from opposing families scars their communities, families and their hastily reincarnated selves who must work thru negative and positive attachment in order to live freely in their new present reincarnations. Great stuff. I count three amazing uses of this trope... 1. Inter-generational sorrow.. The original lovers (In and Korn: IK) suffered in the homophobic 90's and in the 21st C their reincarnations (Pharm and Dean: PD) in a BL friendly Bangkok struggle to believe in the utopian tolerance surrounding them. Y'all know what I mean, for ex. in the US weeping at gay weddings bec past fears rise in the throat. 2. IK vowed to find each other after death, so PD falls in love but they each live a life plagued with disturbing flashbacks and dreams. We learn more about IK as these increase in frequency, punctuating the narrative of the present love story with the unfolding of the original one. The astounding result is that IK and PD slowly become more distinct from each other, not less. PD cannot trust until they work thru the pain of the IK life, and this also works to support some of the ways in which Pharm, whose IK-suffering was extreme, needs to move slowly in love. 3. the families of IK were riven by the their deaths; PD reincarnated back into each others' families but we do not realize how damaged the families actually were until PD begins to reach out to introduce their loves..missing family members, changed names...so Re-I supports the reintegration motif usual at the end of longer dramas.
first posted on Viki spring 2024

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heart-poundingly wonderful sequel,

Rather than do 2 reviews this is about part 1 and 2. There is also a directors cut movie which I havent watched.

Leaves a powerful impact in your heart. The painful and stubborn refusal of one of these true lovers to move beyond a performative servility deprives the *beautiful man* of the love and acceptance he needs. Their constant quarreling overlays a stop-and-start rhythm of personal growth which (oh glorious dorama) results in harmonious equality. Pure beauty. The domestic aesthetic is very japanese. 6 eps of 25mins ea.

Much of what is intimated in MBM 1 is articulated here. Quarreling and weeping, these two men discover a rough outline of what their life together will be; Hira begins to move forward towards a career and Kiyoi begins to be more patient with him. This is a heart-poundingly wonderful sequel, possibly even better than the first 6 episodes. Other reviewers have given such perceptive remarks -- thanks, I feel a little overwhelmed -- I need a couple of rewatches before I can calm down!4 eps at 25 mins ea. A total of about 4 hrs betwen MBM 1 & 2

first posted on Viki March 2024

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