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Arclei
Arms of a femboy
Guai Ge Ci Ke Zuo Tou Pai
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A Merchant and Her Treasure
TLDR; A fun, cute, and surprisingly coherent minidrama with refreshing takes on the lead couple and quite an alright plot. Generally speaking, not bad at all.Whump meter: ◭△△△△ (almost none).
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SHORT VERSION:
┊┊WHAT I LIKED:
►Unique FL with depth
►Cute, tsundere ML
►Endearing and refreshing couple dynamic
►Fun and quite thorough role reversal between the lead couple
►Palatable and rather restrained plot.
►Refreshing takes on standard plots
►Irredeemable villain + female villain
►Music, especially the end credits song
►Production quality was pretty good
┊┊WHAT I DISLIKED:
►Shallow worldbuilding.
►Rushed pacing (especially the end)
►Poor handling of more complicated themes shoved into the finale
►Every woman but the FL is evil/bad (and there barely are any women in general)
►Female villain is rather shallow
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LONG VERSION:
【!very mild SPOILERS below!】
►CHARACTERS:
LEADS:
Characters were fun and interesting, the best among them being the FL. She is strong, smart, and clever, written in a way I’ve not often seen before, much less in a historical setting. She’s a suave, money-oriented merchant who struggled a lot and is a bit too trusting of those around her. She’s cute and sweet in a way that feels mature, still keeping her dignity and flirty personality throughout the drama—a refreshing approach to the usual cutesy FL. She’s no damsel in distress, despite not being able to fight. She stands up for herself and what she believes, speaks her mind, takes initiative, protects those she loves, and uses her wits and skills to build her way up.
Then there’s ML, a suffered musician with a hunger for justice/revenge after extreme tragedy. He’s feisty, hot-tempered, and quite aloof. Sure, cold MLs aren’t anything new, but to me, the portrayal of him as more of a tsundere with an almost innocent longing to hope—his temper a mere wall he put up to keep himself from appearing weak and being taken advantage of—was endearing and refreshing. Despite his hard exterior, he’s kind and sensitive, caring deeply about his allies and living only to bring to justice those who wronged his people. He’s selfless, determined, and skilled in both fighting and music.
In the end (or the beginning for the drama), two individuals who had everything taken from them unknowingly join forces to take down a heartless ruler. What starts as a rocky boss-worker relationship leads to an interesting love story. They took the common trope of the ‘cold man/warm woman’ and added layers to it that made it refreshing and engaging. IT doesn’t feel like there is much of an imbalance when it comes to skillset; FL is eloquent, clever, and charismatic, while ML is the skilled fighter/enforcer. They work together well as a power couple rather than protector/protectee (even though I’m inclined to say FL is quite protective of him). Then there’s the added layer of FL being the one to pursue ML, not in the ‘seduction’ kind of way, but in the ‘trying to win him over’ type of way (in the way men more commonly pursue women). Highly underrated dynamic, their moments together were adorable!
VILLAIN:
Then there’s the villain. I don’t think I’ve seen a villain quite like her yet. Aside from the fact that female villains are already hard to come by, she was a flavour of unhinged, cruel, and heartless that is uncommon, especially for Cdrama standards (and even more so for a minidrama). Thankfully, she went down like a true villain. Unfortunately, though, she didn’t get much development, so she was rather shallow. What little development she did get was at the very end and at the cost of a better narrative, so not only was it still little but also even annoying. It was a particular shame that her relationship and dynamic with FL wasn’t explored more; they hinted at it but didn’t deliver…
THE REST:
Side characters were rather underwhelming all around. ML’s subordinates were fine for comic relief and added some interesting moments plot-wise, but weren’t particularly interesting. Other antagonists were fine for what they were, none particularly memorable, but I also can’t be really upset since more attention for them would’ve definitely taken from the leads.
One of the biggest downsides and something I honestly cannot excuse, especially not for a drama set in a matriarchy, is the sheer absence of relevant, much less decent female characters. Aside from FL, the only other prominent woman is the main villain, and that really is it. The lack of characters isn’t the issue since it’s a minidrama and less is more, but there’s only one decent woman in the entire drama. So much talk about feminism and equal rights, but they have only two female characters, one of whom is an irredeemable monster. I simply can’t overlook the sheer absence of women in a *matriarchy*.
►ACTING:
All prominent actors had a good standard of quality. None stood out as particularly wow, but they didn’t take away either. I’d say the FL was the best; she seemed comfortable in her role and easily pulled off the cute side of her character while still keeping her cool and flirty attitude.
►STORY:
Honestly, surprisingly good. Yes, it has all the usual issues these short minidramas have, such as things breezing by and everything happening extremely fast, but I think in this drama, it is balanced in a way that makes enough sense. Sure, the leads go from enemies to lovers pretty quickly, which isn’t exactly realistic, especially not with all the bickering they did, but the relationship still progresses in a somewhat believable way, so it doesn’t feel like a random 180.
The overall story is rather simple: a revenge story for the ML and somewhat of a recovery story for FL. It isn’t that deep, and it keeps it that way (for the most part, anyway). One of the few minidramas I’ve seen that sticks more to what can work in such a short format (that being romance as the main arc) and leaves the rest to be more of a capsule for the romance rather than the main point of interest. Kudos for that!
On a less positive note, nearing the end of the drama, instead of focusing the last few episodes on finalizing arcs, wrapping up the story, and maybe doing a slightly longer epilogue, they decided to add another arc to the story, that arc being real-world politics (specifically, feminism). Though a nice idea and something they did mention a couple of times throughout the drama, its sudden addition forced into the finale of the drama felt unnecessary, to say the least. This forced them to introduce new characters and locations, give backstory to a whole bunch of characters, and have yet another final monologue, all for an honestly mediocre conclusion that left the main arcs feeling rather lacking (like, the main leads were kinda just there for the entire big conclusion all to leave room for a random new character and the villain 😭).
What started as a simple story of ML taking revenge and FL restoring her life ended with them both basically single-handedly saving the world and fixing deep-rooted societal issues that span decades upon decades. Wholesome, yes, but also cheap. I’m not saying it’s wrong, but I’m merely confused as to why it was necessary in this drama and especially in this way. So much for the simple story.
As for the portrayal of a matriarchy… Of course, I found it once again superficial and lacking. It’s definitely better than others I’ve seen, and it gets more of a pass because of its setup and backstory, that being not of a true matriarchy (spanning at least several years where laws, norms, etc. would be completely different), but rather a somewhat recent branch-off as a form of protest due to the discrimination women faced. The good thing, however, was that the drama focused more on the main couple within the matriarchy than the deeper social issues, something that worked in their favour.
►PRODUCTION:
Definitely one of the more passable minidramas. It’s by no means spectacular, but you can tell there was enough budget to get going, and it was used quite well. Shots are nice and meaningful too (like, surprisingly nice sometimes). Overall, pretty good!
►MUSIC:
I honestly enjoyed it! Worked well for the cutesy drama that it is and the ending song was very catchy!
►ANYTHING ELSE:
In the end, it's a short, enjoyable watch. The short length is both a good and bad thing for the drama. On one hand, with its current plot, any longer would’ve lowered the rating quite a bit, but with how alright the drama already was, I feel like had it been a bit longer, it could’ve as easily increased the rating by allowing more development for the overall story so it doesn’t feel quite as incomplete.
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◇ Was it what I was expecting? Yes, quite.
◆ Did it live up to its potential? Hm, kinda
◇ Would I watch it again? Definitely!
◆ Would I recommend it to others? Yes!
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Very good, waiting for it to be great.
TLDR; An unusual, dark, gritty detective drama with unique and interesting characters and setting but some weird narrative decisions that ultimately take away too much from the drama to be ignored.Whump meter: ▲▲▲◭△ (plenty).
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SHORT VERSION:
┊┊WHAT I LIKED:
►Amazing actors. Everyone gave it their all, and it shows.
►Unique characters with interesting stories, personalities, quirks, appearances, etc.
►Stellar cinematography. A visual masterpiece.
►Story feels grounded and realistic in a unique setting away from the imperial city/other big city.
►Interesting cases, case-solving, and plot twists.
►Interesting themes and arcs that carry across the drama.
┊┊WHAT I DISLIKED:
►Story shifts focus and POV halfway through, crippling its narrative and intrigue.
►A lot of characters are unfortunately underused.
►An underwhelming amount of women.
►Lackluster conclusion.
┊┊OTHER:
►I'd put this more on the positive end, but there's quite some disability representation.
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【!some SPOILERS below!】
LONG VERSION:
┊┊CHARACTERS:
When it comes to characters, they went all out. Everyone is unique and feels like a real person with their own story, backstory, personality, traits, quirks, etc. Most characters are quite memorable too, making it a lot easier to follow who is who than in other dramas. Even smaller characters that only appear a handful of times are fleshed out and interesting. This was honestly such a highlight.
A standout in this regard for me was Song Chen. I haven't often seen characters like him in dramas or shows anywhere. He's not a very common main character, but he works very well.
That all being said, a lot of characters were unfortunately underused. Because of a narrative shift and the inclusion of two POVs (with a slight preference for the new POV in the second half of the drama), the main cast is rather underused, with some characters even feeling like they didn't have a purpose to be there at all.
Some other minor issues are the following:
►1. An underwhelming amount of women are present in the drama. The cast consists mostly of men (to the point where it feels like the vast majority of people in the entire place are men), and the few women who do exist appear little and don't usually add much. Also, for there being so many men in their 30s+, they're for the most part unmarried, which is strange as well.
►2. Some characters were, in my opinion, not well cast. There are characters that should be in their mid-30s and are portrayed by an actor who at least appears to be quite a bit older. Not sure why this was done, especially since everyone else was so perfectly cast.
┊┊ACTING:
I have only praise to sing for each and every single actor in this drama. The performances blew my mind with how good, thorough, and convincing they were. Especially Ning Li as Song Chen and Yu Yao as Lu Zhi were absolute treats.
┊┊STORY:
As for the story, it was good—very good, one might even say—but it had a tremendously big issue that ultimately crippled everything that was so great, making it just good. Don't get me wrong, it's still a very good story; however, the narrative shift and the inclusion of the past as a parallel story ended up taking away far more than it added, depriving the audience of the intrigue and mystery it had built up.
Essentially, the drama has two main casts when it doesn't need to (one in the past, one in the present). Instead of taking the logical route of having the past case slowly be uncovered by the main characters in the present day and the audience gets to follow it in real-time with them, they do 'flashbacks' (which take up about half of the drama's runtime, so I'm using the term very loosely here), which explain everything that went on in the past before the cast in the present day get to uncover it. This plummets the stakes, tension, and mystery of the drama and slowly makes it uninteresting to watch. Now, I'm not saying the flashbacks can't be done, but they must be well crafted and shown to us only little by little as the case in the present day progresses. Otherwise, there's not really a whole lot of mystery going around and the investigation ends up lacking.
The cases, however, were quite interesting, keeping you on your toes throughout the run of the drama. The way the antagonist sets up the crimes is also very unique and gritty.
Plot twists for me were somewhat hit or miss. Especially those relating to the overarching plot were rather mediocre in my opinion, but the smaller ones were very well done! This also ties into the conclusion, which is the type of ending that, the more you think about it, the less sense it makes. The final couple of plot twists don't really make a whole lot of sense, are a weird choice, and end up taking away more than they add. They were the type of plot twists that seemed to be there more to prove the audience wrong rather than to actually make narrative sense.
Finally, I'd like to mention that the drama has a big focus on different themes and arcs that carry across its duration, with a special focus on different perspectives on the same theme, idea, concept, and background, which makes for a pleasant and interesting watching experience.
┊┊PRODUCTION:
Stellar cinematography. It's a visual masterpiece; every scene looks beautiful, and they make sure every shot counts and adds to the narrative. Locations are amazing (mostly real from what I could tell), and it pays off so much. They really tried to give off the idea that you, as a viewer, are there as well, and it makes a world of difference. The world feels so well lived-in and real.
┊┊MUSIC:
The music was good; it fit the drama. It didn't stand out to me, but it also didn't stick out, so overall, it was good.
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◇ Was it what I was expecting? Somewhat better than I was expecting, tbh
◆ Did it live up to its potential? Almost
◇ Would I watch it again? Maybe
◆ Would I recommend it to others? Yes
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Hero x Antihero
TLDR; A fun miniseries with some interesting characters and refreshing dynamics. It's nothing wow, and the little plot it does have is quite standard in concept and mediocre in execution, but it delivers rather unique main leads and a refreshing love story.Whump meter: ▲◭△△△ (mild/very little).
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【Very mild SPOILERS below】
►CHARACTERS:
The highlight for me was definitely the main couple, both refreshing characters we don't often see in a refreshing dynamic we also don't often see. FL is a rough general who suffered a lot but still holds a lot of kindness in her heart (portrayed by an actress who actually looks like she could be a fighter!) while ML is a shady guy who switches from helpless and delicate to homme fatale. Together, they make quite the power couple (unfortunately, we didn't see much of this though), and they're adorable together. Basically, Hero FL & Antihero ML.
My only issue is the unfortunate trope of FL having great flaws that make no sense for her character that the character simply wouldn't have if it were a man (like being illiterate 💀). Meanwhile, ML yet again excels at everything. Since they're doing the role reversal anyway, just commit to it. It didn't really take away from the experience, but I thought it was still worth mentioning.
Side characters were fine for the most part. I enjoyed the main couple's attendants/right-hand men. Prince Yue was also quite an interesting character. I'd say the most dull was Princess Sijiu, who only appeared for a handful of scenes (and was also the ONLY other female character, which is always a minus in my book, but at least they had a good relationship).
►ACTING:
I didn't have an issue with any actor's portrayal. They all did a good enough job, but I'd say ML's actor stood out as the best. He portrayed various rather complex characters very well!
►STORY:
Hilariously, the worst aspect would have to be the story. If you stop and think about something, it all falls apart. There's very little plot to go around, but an unusual amount of attention is put on it. Conflicts and issues are resolved rather quickly, so the stakes are pretty low too.
I think it would've worked better with romance as the main plot and then a sprinkle of something else here and there instead of this romance/political drama. In these sorts of small productions, less is usually more, so keeping things simple is ideal, but yeah.
►PRODUCTION:
Production quality is okay, noticeably low budget though. There's a lot worse, but there's a lot better out there too. It didn't bother me too much, not did it take away from the experience either.
►MUSIC:
The music was not very memorable, just alright. I do remember it being somewhat out of place in certain moments, though.
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◇ Was it what I was expecting? Yes
◆ Did it live up to its potential? Somewhat
◇ Would I watch it again? Yes, I loved the main couple
◆ Would I recommend it to others? Unlikely
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3 Useless Foxes & Some Guy™
TLDR; A confusing mess of a story with shallow characters and underdeveloped dynamics salvaged only by the promising concept, endearing actors, and the low-key fantasy setting of the story.Whump meter: ▲▲◭△△ (quite a bit)
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【spoiler-free】
LIKES:
► Female-centered plot.
► Female villain.
► Unusual and fun outfits.
► Unique premise.
► Nice whimsical feeling and aesthetics.
► Cute romance between the leads.
► Interesting themes.
► Story remains small and doesn't try to do more than it can.
DISLIKES:
► So much love rivalry between the three FLs
► Weak 'strong' women.
► Extremely confusing plot.
► Underdeveloped worldbuilding.
► Underdeveloped characters.
► Underdeveloped everything else.
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【!SPOILERS below!】
►CHARACTERS:
This movie is both female-focused and female-led, meaning that even though the story ultimately is centered around a man, the focus is mostly on the women around him, including FL, SFL, and TFL, who are sisters/in a sisterhood (not sure since they refer to each other as sisters but they never clarify being related). Unfortunately, though, all three characters are quite lacking in both personality and development. Not only that, their dynamic, which one would naturally think would be an important part of a female-focused plot, is severely one-dimensional and underdeveloped.
I feel like this is worth mentioning by itself as well, that the main conflict between them is that they're all three in love with the same man... This also isn't elaborated upon or developed, so it feels ridiculous at best and flat-out insulting at worst. In the very end, they do seem to have some sisterhood going on, but it was really embarrassing to see three 10/10 immortal sisters trying to kill each other over some guy. 💀
Then there's the ML, SML, and the antagonist. ML was quite fine. I thought he was cute, and him not being overpowered was quite refreshing for a ML in a fantasy movie/drama (in fact, he needed saving by far the most!!). His dynamic with FL was also kinda endearing, as was his dynamic with a supporting character. SML was honestly just creepy to me. He has a weird dynamic with FL, which seems to tread uncomfortably between that of a brother and that of a lover, so I wasn't a fan.
Finally, we have the villain. She was underwhelming. We don't really get a whole lot of development on her. In fact, she barely appears at all. At the very least, though, her motives weren't because of love, so it could be worse.
►ACTING:
Overall quite fine. I wasn't really expecting stellar acting, and it met my expectations. Whenever there were awkward moments, it felt more like a direction problem than any of the actor's problem, so I don't really have a lot of complaints about them.
►STORY:
Here's where the biggest issue lies. The story is incredibly confusing. It's clear after the very first scene that the drama is more on the slice-of-life, romantic end of fantasy than the epic, and I was really looking forward to that! Unfortunately, with the pacing they took, it felt more like they were aiming for a drama rather than a movie. They dwell on certain things and characters for entirely too long, then skip important parts of context or development for no reason at all. We get so little development on the antagonists, the world, the main characters, basically everything. The only thing that was somewhat decently paced was the love story.
The missing context, narrative structure, and development crippled the story so badly. Without those, it's just characters kinda doing something vaguely in the same thread as the original set-up. It's a real shame, because the synopsis and even the beginning seemed so interesting, yet the movie somehow managed to be both too slow and too rushed at the same time, making it overall just confusing.
Another issue was with the power level of the three FLs. They're supposed to be powerful immortals, and we're shown that even though their power is limited due to circumstances, they can still do quite a bit, yet when actually needed, they seem so pathetic. This inconsistency was especially noticeable with FL. On one hand, she can carry ML on her back from one dimension onto the other, but she can't even break free from some ribbon binding her arms. I'm so confused.
Then there's the original premise, which is vaguely that because the Sun God had disappeared, all the men of the mortal world no longer had emotions. Not only is this portrayed extremely stupidly, but it's also not developed further than this. It's only really brought up in a handful of throwaway scenes. In the end, we don't even get to see what ends up happening to the mortal world. Was the issue fixed? If so, how did men cope with suddenly being able to feel again? We don't know.
Overall, I really think the story seemed very promising and had a lot of potential (it was especially quite unique, with it being female-centered and having a unique setting and all). I believe it would've worked better as a drama of at least 12 episodes where the world, plot, characters, dynamics, and backstory could be (better) developed.
►PRODUCTION:
Overall, quite satisfactory. It doesn't try to be epic, so the CGI use is not as terrible as in other, more ambitious movies/dramas. It's still noticeably low budget in terms of sets, outfits, etc., but of the watchable and not too-noticeable kind. The cinematography, however, was quite nice. It had some really nice shots.
Final Note: I watched it with good subtitles on Viki, so I don't think I was lacking context in terms of bad translations. The story is simply confusing.
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◇ Was it what I was expecting? Not quite.
◆ Did it live up to its potential? Definitely no.
◇ Would I watch it again? Maybe (Despite everything, I still enjoyed it).
◆ Would I recommend it to others? Maybe.
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Sword vs. Scabbard
TLDR; Unique urban fantasy (emo) drama with fantastic fight scenes and an overall satisfying—albeit crippled by the short runtime—story.Whump meter: ▲▲▲▲△ (plenty of good whump).
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【spoiler-free】
SHORT VERSION:
┊┊WHAT I LIKED:
►Stellar fight scenes and a lot of them. Cool, believable, thorough, and with minimal cuts
►Good villains (one-timers and also the main)
►Unique and unusual locations, as well as using the environment.
►Realistic character's abilities (within supernatural context). Everyone is skilled after years of training.
►Interesting themes about hatred, morality, duty, sacrifice, choice, intentions, and ultimately the bond with those around us.
►Interesting approach to the magic aspect. Primarily how it manifests, ends up affecting ML, and how it is ultimately resolved (feels like an anime in the best way).
►Good cinematography focused on enhancing the story. Looks very legit and even poetic at times.
►Satisfying narrative. Satisfying plot twist, progression, and ending.
►Solid actors and acting.
►Some rather interesting character dynamics.
►Potential for more seasons without being open-ended.
┊┊WHAT I DISLIKED:
►Unfortunately, the FL. She mostly just caused more issues for 'heroes' to solve.
►Abysmal choice of an end-credits song... Made me jump every time with how jarringly out-of-place it was.
►How short it was. It's barely longer than a movie (3-ish hours), which does end up leaving a lot of things underdeveloped since it's formatted like a show.
►Under-developed lore. They hint at a lot of background and lore, but we are only ever given crumbs.
►Not much braining going around.
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【!some SPOILERS below!】
LONG VERSION:
┊┊CHARACTERS:
Because the drama is so short and story-focused, this leaves the characters somewhat behind in terms of purpose and especially development. Forget backstory or setup, but even their reason to be there at all. They're more like the background team of cops, but with hints of depth and as the main cast. I'm not saying they were bad; they were just underused and suffered tremendously from how short the drama was. Even the ML felt lacking in depth and attention. We get glimpses of his character, past, motives, and feelings, but they’re usually rather brief, and he’s the one who gets by far the most development. (I understand not everything needs to be character-focused, and for how long it is, it’s acceptable, just very unfortunate since more attention to the characters would’ve made it all the more thorough, rewarding, and entertaining.).
This also extends to their dynamics, though I believe this was set up better. At least when it comes to ML and SML, who had a very unique and interesting dynamic going on. There was enough setup for us to know what was up, and enough attention given to it throughout the runtime for us to feel for them. Same goes for ML and the main villain. These two dynamics/relationships were by far the highlights of the characterization.
As for the FL, she initially seems to be the main character who stumbles into this unusual ‘world’ hiding in plain sight; however, that soon changes into her being merely a POV character until she's sidelined completely and added in with meaningless moments of relevance only ever at the cost of the intellect of the characters around her (aka, the ones that have been doing this superhero gig for the entirety of their lives, lol). I didn't get her purpose in the story and feel like it would've worked better, smoother, and more cohesive if she wasn't added at all.
The rest of the supporting cast was fine but ultimately also underused. We didn't really get to know much about them; they were just there to serve the narrative purpose and were otherwise sidelined. Even interesting dynamics like that of SML and his father were merely glanced at.
Then there’s the villains: the villain-of-the-week types and also the final antagonist. The former were good; they worked very well for what was needed of them and got enough development, backstory, and setup to feel satisfying without overstaying their welcome. The short duration of the show also made this non-repetitive, so it didn’t drag. The main villain was honestly really cool. Not only was his character cool, but he also actually posed a threat and was genuinely evil. The way he ties into the main hero group is also amazing and adds a lot of good angst and stakes! The only downside was that his reason to be there was glossed over and didn’t make a whole lot of sense with how they set him up. There was some confusion there.
┊┊ACTING:
Solid all around. Even the one-time villains gave it their all for their performances. I’d say the main antagonist, along with ML, were the highlight for me. The villain played such an effortlessly cool badass so well, and ML portrayed the depressed emo-loner nicely.
┊┊STORY:
Generally and overall? Very solid. It’s short, concise, has a good narrative structure, and a proper wrap-up with even room for more seasons without the need to leave things unsolved. The story is rather simple but very well-executed which despite some shortcomings makes it a satisfying watch. Plot twists can be seen coming but are still handled well and thus rewarding even if not particularly shocking.
The worldbuilding showed promise but unfortunately didn’t deliver quite as much as it could’ve. This is largely in part due to the short length but the world, lore and background of the magic/darkness and everyone surrounding it (heroes and villains) seemed very interesting and like there was a lot more of it to tell but didn’t get to see a whole lot. A shame.
As for the magic itself, honestly, very cool. It feels like a realistic anime and I’m totally here for it. The way the darkness manifests from humanity’s own weakness/pain is so real and brings up a lot of interesting narrative potential. Not only that, fighting against said darkness ended up affecting ML too, it was magic with consequences not only for the victims but also for her heroes, such a nice detail (and nice whump). Ultimately, the way it was finally wrapped up in the end was very poetic and well executed, I’m glad they committed to a dramatic, impactful ending and (at least temporary) resolution.
Now onto the main themes of the story, which are largely centered around pain and suffering and how that manifests into (in this drama, literally) darkness that can consume the life of the individual as well as everyone around them. It does well in exploring the value of change, growth, intentions, and ultimately peace, showing the importance of duty and sacrifice but also that of choice and the bond with those around us. It was quite interesting, heartwarming, and rather well-executed.
Another highlight is the fact that this isn’t an origin story or zero-to-hero type deal. Everyone is already capable and worked all their life to achieve the level of skill that they have, which not only makes for a refreshing take on the superhero genre but also a realistic one. The heroes aren’t naturally skilled because they are the MCs and/or the chosen ones; they worked for it. ML even struggles when he’s injured and can be defeated!
┊┊PRODUCTION:
Very good. Money was spent where it matters, and it shows. Locations, props, CGI—the whole thing is very, very legit. Cinematography was very good; shots mattered and were structured to add to the narrative, weight, and theme of the scene.
Fight scenes were some of the best I’ve seen: minimal cuts, good choreography, and the unique feature of ML fighting with a scabbard against sword-wielders made for some very unique fights. Locations were also used to the max throughout the fight scenes and they didn’t all take place in a large open space where one could easily fight. The attention to detail didn’t go unnoticed and was tremendously appreciated.
┊┊MUSIC:
Overall, it was pretty good. Worked well for the genre and scenes; however, that end-credits song... It was really out of place. You have some of the most serious moments in the drama, and it just starts playing this extremely irritating upbeat song. It's not even the issue that it's upbeat, since that could work as a statement or to specifically be ironic, but it's just... ugh.
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◇ Was it what I was expecting? I wasn't really sure what to expect, so I was pleasantly surprised.
◆ Did it live up to its potential? Not really
◇ Would I watch it again? Probably, yes
◆ Would I recommend it to others? Yes!!
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Xing Xing! Cheng Zhu Da Ren
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Double Identity, Double Confusion.
I had been anticipating this drama for far longer than I care to admit, and it took me months to find serviceable subs, so I was quite hyped to get to watching. Alas, I found some subs and was able to complete it and now... I am a bit conflicted.►PLOT
The plot was messy. I do partially blame the poor subs for this, but I can't lie and say that the convoluted story in short-length format and the back-and-forth between what's really going on with her dual personality weren't the worst offenders. I think if the drama was even normal minidrama length (3–4 hours), it would've been far more enjoyable. Especially with the end reveal in mind, the rest of the drama doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Sure, some things were explained, but a couple of sentences at the very end don't nearly make up for the rest of the drama I *actually* watched. But despite its shortcomings, I enjoyed the conclusion of things being somewhat vague. It was fairly satisfying. Plot twists also kept coming with little buildup or relevance, really. That being said, all things considered, it's fine.
I do, however, like that the story is very clearly *about* FL, not ML. Sure, he's the POV character whom we follow, but the story is about her. Doesn't happen nearly often enough in Cdramas.
►ROMANCE
The romance was alright. No kisses, but plenty of endearing hugs and support (especially from ML towards FL), which sometimes means more, right? Right? (The cope is hard.) What was quite disappointing, however, was that, at the very end, it's unconfirmed what their relationship status is. FL tells ML that there are more important things in her life presently than romance, which slay, but was a bit disappointing (I was here for the girlboss x malewife, ok?). It does conclude with ML staying by her side as her consort, vowing to help her, so we can only assume that's a matter for season 2 or our imagination.
►OTHER:
Everything else was overall fine for minidrama standards. Acting was alright, dialogue is hard to judge, production value was, one could say, even slightly better than the average minidramas, music was repetitive as usual, and other than that, there isn't a whole lot to say, really.
It's an alright watch overall; pleasant even if you don't think about it too long, haha.
◇ Was it what I was expecting? Not really
◆ Did it live up to its potential? Kinda
◇ Would I watch it again? Probably not
◆ Would I recommend it to others? Probably not
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A Heartwarming Story Through a Wacky Plot.
TLDR: A wacky and outlandish but tender plot with respectful social commentary and good themes and messages.── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅
SHORT VERSION:
┊┊WHAT I LIKED:
►Heartwarming story.
►Interesting role reversals.
►Good pacing.
►The wacky setting and plot.
►Good (and progressive) social commentary and themes.
►Overall production quality.
┊┊WHAT I DISLIKED:
►Some plot threads were a bit rushed/glossed over.
►No transman representation.
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LONG VERSION:
┊┊CHARACTERS:
The two leads are workaholic friends-with-benefits (I believe anyway, their relationship status is ambiguous throughout the entire drama). ML goes from being a corporate slave at the peak of his game to a softer, more understanding version of himself, still fighting for his dreams but now with a fresh perspective and more respect not only for himself but also for those around him. FL is the typical douchy-boyfriend character. She fluctuates between being supportive and not depending on what's in it for her 9/10 times. In the end she does come around but it takes a bit. Though I didn't dislike her as much as others apparently did, I did think her character could've been tackled better. Because of all this, this drama is NOT a romance (which I admittedly thought it was despite not seeing the genre or tag anywhere, whoops).
Supporting characters were all quite nice and served their purpose well. ML makes a bunch of pregnant male friends, and we get to see others' experiences as well—albeit, admittedly brief.
┊┊ACTING:
Very solid. I honestly bought everything pretty much everyone was selling me without a second of doubt. ML especially delivered (heh) the process of acceptance so nicely, going from confused and angry to slowly understanding more and becoming more gentle. Some supporting roles were more 'eh' but no one broke immersion, so still a win!
┊┊STORY:
The plot is wacky and outlandish, yes. An immediate turn-off for a lot of people, but once you settle into the absurd premise, the story told is respectful and tender. The reversal of roles IS what sets this drama apart from similar social-commentary dramas, and that's personally a win in my book. Some things that should've been addressed due to the premise unfortunately weren't (yes, the 'how' mostly), but at the same time, it wasn't that big of a bother. They worked well with the setting and gave various perspectives on the situation.
As for the themes, I must say, I was positively surprised. With such a wacky plot, it could've easily turned into a laughing stock or a mock, but that didn't happen. They took their story seriously and used it to tackle themes of diversity, inclusivity, labels, feminism, gender roles, and general expectations tastefully and respectfully without really being preachy. Admittedly, a transman character was greatly lacking, and I feel this would've elevated the story tremendously, if even only as a supporting character.
The pacing is very well done; the show neither drags nor feels rushed despite being only 3 hours long. Even the conclusion felt satisfying, wrapping up everything with a nice little bow. Honestly, I don't really have a whole lot of complaints.
The only issue, which was more of an unfortunate thing than an issue, would be the fact that certain arcs, mostly those relating to the lead's parents (FL especially), weren't all that developed.
┊┊ANYTHING ELSE:
Pretty much everything else about the drama was good. The music was good to honestly, really good; I enjoyed quite a few tracks. Production value was also very solid! The drama even has some comedic scenes despite the overall more grounded tone. Overall, I have like no complaints!
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◇ Was it what I was expecting? Yes.
◆ Did it live up to its potential? Yes.
◇ Would I watch it again? Yes.
◆ Would I recommend it to others? Yes, as long as they can handle wacky premises.
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2049－The Hedgehog Effect
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Deze recentie kan spoilers bevatten
Messed-up doesn't even begin to cover it.
TLDR; An overall good drama about the complexity of mother-daughter relationships that suffers tremendously from disturbing and harmful messages.Whump meter: △△△△△ (none).
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【spoiler-free】
LIKES:
► Quite nice cinematography.
► Cool and unique architecture.
► Amazing styling and outfits (especially for FL).
► Quick and good pacing.
► Interesting premise about messed up family dynamics and the trauma surfacing because of it.
► Female centered plot.
DISLIKES:
► The messages and overall theme. (Which basically is: forgive everyone who wronged you, and it’s your fault that you’re unhappy.).
► The fact that the true villain of the story isn't reprimanded but rather praised.
► The abrupt plot twist in the end which leaves you thoroughly confused about the entire story.
It seems like I disliked little, but the messages and themes are the most important parts of this drama 😭
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【!SPOILERS below!】
►CHARACTERS:
Characters were alright for the most part. FL is a strict and cold helicopter parent stuck in an unhappy marriage. SFL is in a similar predicament, but she’s more volatile and emotional than FL. The story focuses on the two of them as they navigate their similar lives together and try to heal from the trauma brought upon them by their hatred of their mother.
The supporting cast consists primarily of FL's husband, mother, and daughter. FL's husband appears to be a distant yet caring man who's trying but always falls short of his wife's expectations, but in truth, he's the villain of the story (I'll elaborate more in the STORY section since it's related to their backstory). I have no complaints about either the mother or the daughter; both served the plot well, were interesting, and had complete arcs. Unfortunately (but also understandably), we get less development and focus on SFL's character and family, so there's not much to say there.
►ACTING:
Overall, not bad. The leads were, for the most part, quite good, though there were some meh moments. Supporting characters were kinda hit-or-miss. Some did fine, others were painful to watch.
►STORY:
FL is forced to confront the reality of her own life when another woman in a similar situation approaches them. Together, they try to navigate their lives and heal from the trauma brought upon them by their hatred of their mother, which is presently affecting FL’s relationship with her own daughter. It had all the potential to be an interesting story about the complicated relationship between mothers and their daughters and how that affects both parties even decades later. But what started as an in-depth story about a severely messed-up family dynamic and the trauma that surfaces because of it turned into a very disturbing tale of forgiving everyone who wronged you.
At first, FL’s mother is the villain of the story since we’re experiencing it from FL’s perspective. As the story progresses, FL starts blaming different people, including her husband, only to eventually settle that everything was her own fault for not forgiving those who had ruined her life. The final message of the story is that you must always forgive your family because, no matter what, you can never escape them. 💀 Though FL’s mother is framed as the villain in the beginning, they do a good job of showing her growth since FL was a child and how things aren’t as black and white as FL had seen them. That was good. However, the true villain isn’t the mother OR FL, but rather FL’s husband, who, for some ungodly reason, is portrayed as just a distant but loving husband when he literally got FL pregnant when she was 16 (and he was dating her mother, so definitely not a teen/young adult).
This plot twist just ruined the entire story. Not just because it’s a messed-up thing; you can definitely tackle messed-up stories, but that’s the whole problem. He’s not framed as a villain. Him hooking up with the daughter of his girlfriend when the girl was underage, getting her pregnant, and then marrying her is framed as okay?? If anything, he’s PRAISED for sticking around and not leaving the girl pregnant and alone. How is everyone so calm about this? How is the story trying to blame FL when she was taken advantage of by someone who should’ve protected her? I just can’t get over this. Never does this get mentioned again, either. The couple just made up and called it a day... I wanted to rate the drama higher, but such a terrible message excusing such vile behaviour cannot get a higher rating from me.
Other than that, the story was fine. If it wasn't for the above trashshow, the story is definitely more of a 7 than a 2. The pacing was good; it had a pretty solid beginning and middle, the ending could’ve been better and far less confusing, but whatever.
►PRODUCTION:
Very solid. Visual effects were very good, same with the cinematography, locations, sets, and clothing. I honestly have no complaints in this regard. It looked like a very legit drama.
►MUSIC:
Good enough—nothing memorable but also nothing painful to the ears.
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◇ Was it what I was expecting? No
◆ Did it live up to its potential? Meh
◇ Would I watch it again? No
◆ Would I recommend it to others? Unlikely
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Extremely Promising Setup, Dwindling Progression, Lackluster Conclusion.
TLDR; An interesting sci-fi premise with amazing production value, promising characters, and interesting themes, but ultimately lacking in the direction it was taken and its use of the original setup and characters.Whump meter: ▲◭△△△ (Light on the whump)
【spoiler-free】
LIKES:
► Stellar cinematography.
► Unique, realistic settings and locations.
► Mostly good performances from the actors, with some even being very good.
► Flawed characters.
► Promising premise and themes.
► Interesting final villain’s arc.
► Seemingly intentionally written as mediocre.
DISLIKES:
► Weak villains with little development and goals.
► Underused characters.
► Drama where not necessary, and no drama where necessary.
► Too few female roles and those relevant are only relevant to the MLs.
► Fade to black in a LOT of important scenes.
► A lot of things were brought up but went nowhere or added nothing while important things weren’t elaborate on.
► Uncertain subgenre, thus ultimately juggling conflicting narrative approach and progression.
► Low stakes
【!some SPOILERS below!】
CHARS:
You have a group of university students trying to save the world from a dangerous app after losing someone close to them. The usual characters are there: the troubled idealistic leader (SML), the kind one (FL), the hothead friend (TML), the preppy girl, the sensitive girl, and the bully. They take up most of the screen time for the first couple of episodes, as the typical students in a mystery-thriller would, while the ML, mostly just messes around on the side. But then everyone but SML and FL takes a tremendous backseat. No longer is it about an unconventional group of youths trying to save the world but rather about a troubled young man’s descent into madness after being stood up once (he was giving sigma male (basically an introverted alpha male) the whole time, tbh). And once this happens, ML starts getting significantly more screen time and importance.
The problem? ML isn’t a good protagonist. Not only does he fight his chosen oneness throughout the ENTIRE drama, but he has no skillset, is consistently the dumbest person in the entire cast, and doesn’t care about anything other than his mother and sister. Not only that, he has no fighting, investigation, or other ability of any kind. In every sense, he’s useless. One protagonist makes sense (SML), the other does not (ML). But there are four lead roles. The other two being FL (who’s supposedly the second lead) and TML. FL is merely a catalyst for both MLs' stories. To ML, her brother, she’s the only reason he does absolutely anything. To SML, she was the last drop in his cup before it tipped over, sending him spiraling. For both men, she was, in some way or another, the cause. But as herself? She does little to nothing. Extremely disappointing leading female role. As for TML, he did consistently NOTHING for the entire drama. He had a side arc that added nothing, had a very relevant skillset that was only used thrice, and other than that, was only a supporting role to the already supporting role that was FL.
Other side characters include people who are only ever serving ML for no good reason or characters who do all the relevant stuff off-screen. ML has a lawyer friend who constantly helps him, an assistant-like character (who was my favourite) who does EVERYTHING for him but all off-screen. Then there’s SML’s father, who does most things off-screen too, but when he’s there, he’s rather solid (though nothing revolutionary). His story, however, ends somewhat inconclusive and underwhelming.
As for the antagonists, we know little to nothing about them throughout the entire drama. Not only the organisation itself but also the leader of it. She seemed promising in the beginning but quickly went from mysterious and scary to outright pathetic. the final villain was fine in theory but terrible in execution. He is a plot-twist villain, which was well done—albeit a bit rushed—but him being the final bad guy in the way he was set up was laughable at best and irritating at worst.
Then there’s the character relationships and dynamics, which, like everything else, were lacking. They started good with the group of youngsters; there was a clear conflict between them, and it had the promise of being interesting with how the story progressed, but then they dropped the ball, leaving us only with SML and FL, who were fine together; they did seem to have chemistry and bounced off each other well—but nothing really relevant with the direction they took the story. FL is supposedly besties with TML, but it feels very one-sided (with him giving the most). There’s ML and his lawyer friend as well as SML’s father; he has good scenes with both. Then there’s one of the main dynamics, which is between FL and ML, but they only ever scratched the surface of it. Their scenes together are surprisingly few. And finally, the most important dynamic between SML and his long-lost father… EXTREMELY underwhelming. Their relationship goes nowhere before it abruptly ends and then causes no further issues.
ACTING:
Acting was alright for the most part. Everyone did a good enough job, some better than others, but none of the main cast really stood out to me either. Those that did were Hu Wei (who slayed as usual), Wang Zhen, who nailed the bubbly cutie, and Fu Mei, who made my skin crawl (in the good way). Fan Chengcheng (SML) had a difficult role with a lot of depth and intrigue but didn’t have the best execution. I do think the mediocre character was in great part the writing, but I also think his performance was a bit lacking. I’d complain more, but I honestly don’t think it was an issue of the actors but rather direction/writing.
STORY:
The story is set up as a youth thriller, balancing a good deal of relationship drama with an overarching thriller plot. It’s the kind of story that depends tremendously on its characters to make things interesting, but unfortunately, it simply does not do that. What starts as a promising setup turns into a mediocre saving-the-world chosen-one style plot with one of the most weirdly written protagonists I’ve ever seen. About halfway through, the focus shifts entirely from the original setup and becomes a classic buddy-cop situation, only without the buddy and without the cop; it’s just two middle-aged men doing something (one significantly more than the other).
The original premise itself also becomes irrelevant after the first couple of episodes. Sure, characters still use the Wisher app, but the application itself doesn’t cause the same amount of issues as it did early on in the later parts of the story. It’s merely a thing that exists in the background rather than the main point of the whole drama. It’s like the original premise was somewhat forgotten in the convoluted plot that came later.
A lot of things are brought up but not elaborated on; various important things happen off-screen (darn that fade-to-black nonsense), and we’re only ever told these things after the fact. The drama, however, is not clever enough to give subtle hints without explicitly needing to state them which overall makes for quite a confusing and ultimately frustrating watch. Just when you think you got something, it’s revealed to be something else, and you’re constantly left to draw conclusions with the mere breadcrumbs thrown at you. Viewers are only ever allowed to see about 40-50% of the story.
The origin of the Society of Wishers is such an example. The original creator is revealed at a certain point and briefly explains what went down, but it’s so vague that it’s immediately forgettable, which consistently makes his character feel out of place. Then the organisation itself is uncertain in background, goal, leadership, position, and values, which makes them quite a pathetic antagonistic force. We see very little of them, so one can only draw conclusions, which are then immediately shot down in the next batch of scraps thrown at you.
The ending was rushed, but honestly fine. Not particularly satisfying or conclusive, but it was passable. Then there were the bonus epilogue scenes, which hint at a second season… and, uh, I’m confused.
And finally, the drama has this issue where it cannot kill off characters, so the stakes are extremely low. This is quite bad for a * thriller* of all things, and was especially disappointing after the buildup every death got… * sigh*
PRODUCTION:
Absolute perfection. Everything from the CGI to the cinematography, locations, and even outfits were top-notch. The futuristic city looks quite legit for being mostly, or in great part, CGI. The shots are stunning. Filming locations are largely real, as well as varied and unusual, catering to the type of show rather than maximizing aesthetics. That’s not to say that aesthetics aren’t important; sets and locations are beautiful, mixing highly futuristic elements with very vintage stuff, all wrapped up in a whole lot of greenery. Character styling was also very good. I especially loved FL, SML, and Bo’s outfits!
MUSIC:
Good. Felt very fitting for the genre, scene, and moment. Nothing particularly stands out in the good or bad sense, just good futuristic thriller vibes.
─
◇ Was it what I was expecting? In a way, yes.
◆ Did it live up to its potential? No
◇ Would I watch it again? Unlikely
◆ Would I recommend it to others? Yeah
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Endearing and Fun Bunch of Nonsense
TLDR; A pretty alright minidrama with a simple, rather nonsensical storyline and an endearing lead couple. It definitely doesn't try to be more than it is or can be.Whump meter: ◭△△△△ (almost none).
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►CHARACTERS:
Characters were alright. None stood out as particularly good, but they worked nicely for the drama. I will say that the main lead's dynamic was rather refreshing. FL is actually allowed to be fully rowdy and tough while remaining feminine and endearing. They don't dumb her down or make her always need to be saved by the ML. She is a heroine, and they commit to the part, having her save the day, fight bad guys, and be the cool hero everyone looks up to. Meanwhile, ML is more like her sidekick husband, supportive of her and relying mostly on his smarts. He's very dramatic, posh, and proper when compared to FL, so they contradict and compliment each other nicely.
Side characters weren't particularly memorable, and they honesty didn't add much or do much. Neither SFL nor SML really had an arc of any kind; they were kinda just there for the most part, occasionally adding comic relief. ML's mother was quite endearing, though. Unfortunately underused but fun. The villains can't really be called villains, which honestly works pretty well for the format, length, and story.
►ACTING:
Performances were average to me. No one really stood out as particularly good or bad, so rather average. I had seen the lead actress in Ye Cheng first, and I gotta say she did a lot better in this drama.
►STORY:
The story is pretty nonsensical from start to finish. It's not the kind of drama you watch for the plot, but even so, it was particularly underwhelming. The main arc is forgotten halfway through and only brought back for the final wrap-up. Side arcs, more often than not, don't go anywhere and are left unfinished, and a lot of questions are left unanswered by the end.
There were also a lot of very strange decisions scattered throughout the drama that I wasn't very fond of. Particularly in how the main couple treated each other from time to time and the SML did some very sketchy stuff nearing the end, which was quite uncomfortable to sit through and I don't feel was handled with the care such topics should have. Maybe I'm overthinking a silly minidrama, but I still think that certain topics shouldn't be sprinkled in for a quick laugh. Idk
Nearing the end, there are some very WEIRD decisions that take away so much from the story and leave one with more questions than answers, as well as feeling some kinda strange and uncomfortable way...
I must give credit where credit is due, though, and that is that the drama doesn't try to be more than it is, which is rare for these minidramas (that so often delve into bigger plots, palace drama, etc., which take up way too much of the runtime and feels very underwhelming). This drama focuses on the leads' relationship and the little plot that surrounds them.
The comedy was pretty hit or miss. Some moments were quite funny, but there was also an unfortunate amount of embarrassment and gross humour, so...
►PRODUCTION:
Production value was pretty legit. More in the style of those short-ish webdramas (The likes of The Romance of Tiger and Rose) than other minidramas. The world and everything within it didn't seem quite as small as in other dramas of similar length. As for the cinematography, it was rather nice. Overall, pretty good.
►MUSIC:
The music was fine, not particularly memorable, and the main theme did get a bit tiring after a while, but that's a minor detail.
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◇ Was it what I was expecting? Not really, in a good way
◆ Did it live up to its potential? Pretty much
◇ Would I watch it again? Unlikely
◆ Would I recommend it to others? Sure
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Entire Personality: "I Read The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka"
TLDR: A pretentious drama crutching so much on metaphors relating it to another story that it ends up being not only exceptionally dull but also extremely grating.Whump meter: ▲▲▲▲◭ (there's a lot, ok).
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I won't make this long because I honestly don't want to waste any more time with this drama. The worst offender regarding this drama is just how pretentious it feels. It really took the "It's all a metaphor related to The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka" and made that its entire personality. Because trust me when I say, the drama has little identity other than that. The characters are shallow, most being shy of a caricature we unfortunately and for some reason spend HOURS following. Especially SML (portrayed by Lee Dong Wook) was an inconsistent nightmare (LDW acted the crap out of this role, though, I'm in awe). I'm not gonna lie, for most of the drama I thought he was gonna end up being a slenderman-like entity with how all-over-the-place he was (which might've single-handedly made this drama a 9 for me) but that obviously wasn't the case. Even the phenomenal performances from literally every single actor in this drama couldn't save such midcore writing.
The best thing the drama does (casting aside) is the unsettling vibe. I will admit, that was well captured and executed. From the claustrophobic feel to the overall 'wtf is wrong with this place' vibe. Kudos. Cinematography, production quality, OST, etc were all serviceable to good so no real complaints there either.
Without going into spoiler territory, the ending was bad. Nonsensical and not well executed. All tying back to this overly presumptuous superiority complex either the screenwriter or the original IP's writer had of making it 'poetic' and 'subverting expectations' and being 'deep'. I heard a lot of people call this a descent into madness, and I guess you could call it that? But even that feels a too generous. The drama has an unreliable narrator, but rather than being engaging and exciting to follow the main character's story from his unstable POV, it felt more dumb, boring, and irritating. Especially with the ending 'plot twist', it really brings to question the rest of the drama and how it unfolded, and not in the 'wow, I missed so much' kind of way but rather in the 'wtf, this makes no sense' kind of way. It's also strange for a drama already almost half the length of the usual Kdramas to still somehow be so exceptionally slow. So much time is spent meandering around half-baked side characters or just, standing... If this were an hour and a half long indie film, then whatever, but come on.
In the end, the drama is merely alright. It does some things good, some things bad, like most dramas out there. However, this drama somehow manages to have mostly 9s and 10s across the ratings, which is shocking to me but I'm glad people like it. Would I have enjoyed watching this more if people didn't unanimously claim that it was the best thing since slice bread? Probably. But that wasn't the case, so I'm not only disappointed I watched a mid show; I'm also disappointed I watched a pretentious show everyone claimed to be phenomenal.
This isn't the first time something referencing The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka was midcore and irritating so I think it's best for me to just stay away from that all together, lmao.
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◇ Was it what I was expecting? No.
◆ Did it live up to its potential? No.
◇ Would I watch it again? Definitely no.
◆ Would I recommend it to others? Probably not.
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