1
Herman
USA
Story (7.5):
So yeah, I have an issue where I constantly drop dramas if they get the slightest bit boring or do something I don't like. But I came back to this one religiously and watched it every day a new episode came out. I know it's not perfect, but it was just good enough and fun enough I can't fault its faults (if that makes any sense).
Primary issues for me are in this section of rating (the story) but I won't spoil anything (hopefully) so read on.
First off, don't worry; fat shaming isn't really an issue in this drama. The first episode might feel a bit wonky, but things get better and it's essential to the whole rest of the plot. This story has got comedic romance, potential love triangles, hidden identities, and crazy exes. It's got the whole gambit, but it seems to take most of them and add its own spin on them so they don't feel crazy. Case in point the main storyline "hidden identity". Sure it's not the first of its kind, but it certainly didn't feel like an overused trope (plus hidden identity tag is one of my favorites).
I think the flaws that detract from the story for me are mostly some underwhelming resolution (mostly in character developments) and throughout there were a few character actions that didn't feel inline with the characters. Also, the number of times the main character faints or is somehow in terrible danger might be a record...
Acting/Cast (9.5):
Let me just say that this drama wouldn't be the same without Shin Sung Rok. There are few other actors I can imagine playing this role. He's hilarious and literally the best part of the drama.
At first I was hesitant about Go Won Hee but she showed me wrong and this pairing was a lot of fun to watch.
I can't point at a bad actor in this drama really. I'll never look at Jo Han Chul the same (I didn't think he had it in him to be that crazy), and was pleasantly surprised with Kim Jin Kyung (as the daughter).
Oh, and you can't forget about Kim Min Kyu. Literal puppy dog. That's the only way I can describe him.
Music (9.0):
Lots of fun tracks in this one and some might go onto some of my playlists. That perfume melody will always cause me to listen for thunder lol.
Rewatch Value (8.0):
Never a fan of rewatching much, I've already rewatched parts of this drama. Lots of fun to be had.
Overall (8.5):
While I can't say it was groundbreaking, a top favorite, or something I'll remember nostalgically, Perfume will be one of those dramas I remember as generating a lot of laughs watching and one that didn't give me much of a headache or worry that it would go horribly wrong. Perfect drama to sit back and relax to.
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This season blew me away. It was so much more emotional and moving than the first two while relying on them as a foundation. For those who can relate, it is reminiscent of the third Lord of the Rings movie.
Honestly, I can't help but draw parallels between this and Lord of the Rings.
This falters in lofty depictions every now and then from a technical standpoint, but it's so moving. My cheeks are still conduits.
I could not help but think of the hobbits returning to The Shire after a long fought war when the last episode ended with a plain scene of Balsa returning to the hut to see Tanda moving around inside, birds chirping in the background and a peaceful piano piece playing. I was at a loss for words, it was so beautiful. She enters and there's a shot of her spear left outside the hut, leaning against the wall... Ah. Closure.
I'm breaking out of my usual review format because I don't know what I'm saying.
Now I'll try to remember to the start of this season.
Story (10):
First off, by the end of the season you may have already forgotten about the Kambal sequence (which is almost the whole first half), but it was a very good part of the story. We get to see major character development and reconciliation in our titular character Balsa as well as more of her nation shaping actions. A major part of this development and Kambal adventure is her past with Jiguro which I can't applaud enough. I didn't expect this, because I thought we'd seen a fair enough of her background, but this season is where we see everything that happened with her father and Jiguro...
Basically, the Kambal king killed her father (ordered it), and Jiguro rescued Balsa and was labeled a traitor for doing so. This caused his whole clan to be disgraced for many years.
And there are so many good side characters introduced in this season including her Aunt who has a bitter love for Jiguro (I loved this and how it plays out even after his death), the almost awkward prince son of the Kambal king, and Jiguro's nephew Cahm who plays a large role to the end of the season. Even these side characters have development arcs; for instance, Cahm is despondent at Jiguro for the disgrace of the family clan, and blames him for his mother's death. His hatred falls to Balsa as an accomplice, and we see how he changes and grows from this angry young man.
The second half of this season (there's a blend of course), focuses on the invasion of the Talsh empire as well as potential disaster from the migrating Naguyu waters. That's really all I'll say about the plot now, but there's a lot going on here with characters too.
First and foremost, there's the relationship between Balsa and Tanda.
I'll have to admit, I didn't feel it for whatever brief, apparent unrequited affections Tanda had in the first season, and it wasn't really part of the second season beyond missing each other. However, here I guess I only just realized how deep their connection was as childhood friends from the portrayal of the backstory in the first half of this season.
Even then, I still thought all the feelings were one-sided until Balsa migrates back to the hut that Tanda, her and Jiguro shared when she was growing up. She's expecting Tanda and professes to missing his cooking (wait, was that from S2...), but when she arrives, he's gone off to war.
Watching them apart and trying to get together exposed true feelings of emotional reliance and what a peace they are to the other, and when they reunite it only grows more apparent.
There's another side character I thought would be a Mary Sue at first who is interested in Tanda, but she proves her worth and ends up giving Balsa a nudge in the right direction to help the relationship along.
That said, this isn't a lust filled relationship, people. That's not what we're here to watch and the show did a good job of keeping it in line with the story so it didn't feel jarring.
Since I went on and on about Balsa and Tanda I'll try to keep other relationships short, but there's a very interesting relationship with the Emperor and the Second Empress that also actually plays into the plot. While we're on the subject, the Emperor. He was only the supposed God in the previous seasons, but here we see more of his thoughts and why he has become that way, and we see how far he is willing to go to stick to his ideals. It's both aggravating and moving at different times.
And then there's Prince Raul. My initial reaction on seeing him in S2 was that he was a spoiled, cruel prince. He may be cruel, but he has passion and motivation, and we see him come to a breaking point towards the end that was great to watch to see his flaws.
Do you guys get the point? There are lots of great characters in this show.
Acting (9.5):
I'm only docking a point because there were a couple jarring acting scenes, but most of it was very good, and there were some very exceptional scenes that had me crying (before the last episode).
I can't review acting without making another parallel to LOTR. The more I watched, the more Chagum looked like Frodo. It's not really the character, but the actor actually reminded me of Elijah Woods and I couldn't get over it in a good way. Loved that.
Plus, did I mention, Ayase Haruka?
I think for secondary characters, some of my favorites were Cahm and Prince Raul (of the Talsh empire)
Music (10):
I've talked about this music before in my other reviews of the previous seasons.
It's exceptional. I don't know if it's based off of the anime or anything because I haven't bothered to watch or listen to that (yet), but it's phenomonal. I never skipped the intro because I loved listening to the title track.
I briefly mentioned it earlier, but I cannot get over that ending. Whoever decided to end the show with that piano piece was brilliant. I'm still crying. even this far into the review okay, don't laugh.
Rewatch Value (10):
I thought the other seasons were ones I would seriously consider rewatching at some point... I didn't know what I was in for with this season. This is going on my list of most rewatchable things (as in ANYTHING, movie, drama, show, regardless of origin), ever.
Overall (10):
There's on denying it isn't completely perfect, but I felt it was mostly on a technical level that this had any failures. There were the few CGI shots that I had to cringe at, but there were also very well done CGI effects and some amazing cinematography.
At one point in the last episode, I was very disappointed with a water sound effect that almost ruined the gravity of the sequence, but at the end of the episode I could care less.
Again, there was also some issues with scale. 15 people instead of 15,000 soldiers, etc. But I have to admit, the battle sequences are done better than usual C-Dramas for instance.
And that's the battles, I'm not talking about the fights. Something about the fights in the second season, especially the first half of it, felt lacking. This season, not so. Gorgeous fight sequences. Spears are my favorite now.
For anyone still reading, any Kaladin fans?? I'd love a Japanese dramatization of The Stormlight Archive. Kaladin is a spear-wielder and I couldn't help but think of him throughout this show.
So seriously, if you've seen the first two seasons and aren't sure if you want to finish, then get over it, watch it please. This exceeds the first two. If you haven't watched the first two seasons, just start it. The first season is only 4 episodes and while the weakest of the three, sets a good world building foundation and showcases some good fight sequences. If you aren't in love with Balsa after it, then I'm not in love with you either.
I'll conclude my longest review yet (I think, maybe?), and let you go watch this show. I may edit this when I think of more to add.
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But I think I have a cavity.
Story (6.5):
This show was pretty much perfect for quite a ways. There was a great premise and set up, plenty of romantic drama and potential sabotages, media frenzies, fan greets, drama, romance, will they won't they... And then stuff calmed down.
And then the story went bonkers. I don't want to offend anyone, because the story is actually emotional and moving and it's not stupid or like I hate it, but it did change the tone of the drama. In my eyes, it broke up with most of the realism and down to earth maturity of the drama I'd felt to that point and got a new girlfriend called all the k-drama cliches you can think of.
I'm not going to lie, we saw some of this stuff coming from miles away and there are sooo soo many coincidences riddled throughout this drama, but as that ending kept going and oh wait another secret thing and okay that's convenient now that I think about it that's super coincidental... it's great but kicked me a bit out of starry eyed love into dispassionate appreciation mode. :)
I think if it had fewer episodes it would have been great. Either that or they need to change up their drama. Some of that stuff I was okay with but eventually I stopped caring all that much.
By far my favorite part of the plot was her undercover fangirling which also suffered a hit when the end drew near. I felt that particular storyline lacked full conclusion compared to other aspects. The last two episodes were twiddle my fingers candy. :D
Okay, enough criticism, now everything else is perfect.
Acting/Cast (10.0):
Park Min Young is (and has been) one of my favorite actresses (perhaps even my #1) and Kim Jae Wook is great in this drama. I was hesitant about the pairing at first and it's still not my favorite pairing (I much prefer Ji Chang Wook), but combined with their chemistry and Jae Wook's brilliant portrayal of a perfect boyfriend, you can't hate on this lead couple.
All of the other cast is very well done (yes even crazy director), but I think one of my favorites was the actress Kim Bo Ra who played Cindy. After watching this show, I realized I've seen her in a handful of other shows, most recently Ghostderella. I would honestly love to see a spin off show of her and that potential romantic interest at the end (not gonna spoil it guys). That would be such a fun show :D
Music (9.0):
That main opening song kept getting stuck in my head! I'd be going around thinking "All I want is you, all I want is you!" lol. There wasn't a whole lot else that stuck out, but there are other good songs throughout this show even down to the background music playing in the Cafe.
Rewatch Value (9.0):
There's such an assortment of fun and cute moments in this show, it's highly rewatchable. I'll admit, I'll probably stick to the first half, but don't put down the rest so easily.
Overall (8.5):
So overall, some mixed feelings; well over halfway, this completely topped What's Wrong With Secretary Kim (WWWSK), but as it kept going so much felt thrown on to keep the show going and also made the show lose some of it's credibility that it'd done so well holding to for awhile. We could see some of it coming for awhile, and I'd groaned a bit, but expected it... and then they just kept adding on... But if I'm really bored of a show I have trouble watching it, and that was not the case here. I watched every episode the day it came out... so yeah.
Compared to WWWSK they come up about even in my recollection, though this has the lead in the first half.
Recommend to all rom-com fans especially if you're sick of people who don't communicate and stop talking over minor mis-understandings and act like teenagers when they're in their 30s. This show is for you!
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Strong Woman Do Bong Soon
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Story (7.5):
I'll start with that I really enjoyed the first half more than the second half, even though the blossoming relationship was really great to see and there was great chemistry between the actors that didn't show up as much in the first half.
However, there were just enough overly ridiculous elements to this drama that it just couldn't get the 10 I so wanted to give to it after the first few episodes.
The main reasons include: stupid gangsters, stupid police, stupid "professional" workers, stupid comedy, stupid monk, stupid jokes...
The other reasons include: unnecessary gangsters, unnecessary "professional" workers, unnecessary stupid comedy, entirely unnecessary monk, unnecessary stupid jokes... And too little Ji Soo (only kind of kidding).
I enjoyed some of the comedy and loved to laugh at this drama, but it just got more and more ridiculous.
I don't want to bash on this drama too much because I really, really enjoyed it especially every scene that had: Park Bo Young, Park Hyung Shik, Ji Soo; and also didn't have: Kim Won Hae, Im Won Hee.
However, the final deal breaker was the final scene of the final episode, which episode I really enjoyed on so many levels and really didn't enjoy on some other levels.
It was great to see some last scenes with a sadly 2d but amazingly acted villain, and the result of relationship between mains was just the cherry on top... But then they had to go in and throw that last scene in which you see some irresponsibility with some mumbo jumbo about the world which I admit looked cool, but the more I thought about it the more I felt it didn't fit with the character...
*SIGH* That probably took away at least 0.5 off of my final score.
Acting/Cast (10):
Park Bo Young and Park Hyung Shik were aMAzing together, and having Ji Soo in there was just a great plus. The rest of the casting was great too, especially from the villain! and even from the overly ridiculous characters as they played it how they should have, even if I didn't exactly enjoy it all.
Music (7.5):
I guess I should also mention the music... It wasn't anything spectacular that I loved; the Love you love you song was fine and actually a really decent song, but nothing unique. Some people may like the Trouble song too, but not my cup of tea.
Rewatch Value (8.0):
For rewatch... I could re-watch a lot of the scenes over and over, and in truth I watched the majority of the drama twice, one raw and once with subs; but I think most of my rewatching will only be done on the first half, especially if it's full episodes.
Overall (8.0):
Wish I could have given it a 10, but had enough filler comedy I just couldn't deal. Still a great drama and recommended!
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Story (10.0): An amazing storyline! Didn't have me hooked from the get go, but it did soon enough. I have a problem where I can love a drama and still lose interest in continuing, or I see some negative comment on the next episode and I'm like meh I'll watch this later, let's go find a new drama. Or I even have to read recaps to get through a drama... Healer was nothing like that. Seriously. There was one point when secrets are being revealed that I saw a comment on the next episode saying how distrusting Ji Ahn was of her friends... Let me tell you, that almost had me wait for a whole minute to watch the next episode! But in the end I completely disagreed with the negative comment anyway. What I love about Ji Ahn was that she trusted her friends even when things didn't look good and evidence pointed the wrong way. She had her weaknesses but she was also a strong female character. And Jung Hoo can DEFINITELY hold his own. Plenty of squeal worthy fighting and pseudo-parkour to please anyone. Sometimes when I watch dramas even if I enjoy some melodrama, there is a point where miscommunication and the like can get extremely annoying and cause me to drop the drama. There were one or two points where I felt something coming in this storyline along those lines, but I was surprised both times by the resolutions that just made me love the characters more. If anyone has any qualms about the 20 episodes vs. 16, there was not even a single sign of dragging to make this drama the full 20 episodes. In fact, at the end I was hoping for a little more time to cool off and see the characters in their finally peaceful lives!
Acting/Cast (10.0): I loved all the characters in this drama and they were all played by very good actors/actresses! If I have any complaint here, it's that I couldn't stop seeing the nervous Emperor Huizong whenever Ji Chang Wook was playing Park Bong Soo... I even half expected the dramatic deathly hand drop at one scene where Oh Ji Ahn is holding his head in her lap... :D Of course this doesn't detract at all because Ji Chang Wook is such a good actor anyway. Even the children actors were amazing and small boy Jung Hoo had me crying when he was eating that potato... Ahh, the feels. The best part was that Ji Chang Wook and Park Min Young are really good together as a couple; definitely not the best, I have at least two other couples that surpassed this one, but it is probably a top 5, maybe 3, of my favorite drama couples. (Even if my mind keeps throwing Empress Ki in the mix).
Music (8.5): Pretty good music, but it took me a few episodes to really feel it... Don't get me wrong, the music fits with the drama, but it didn't quite resonate with me from the start. However, the lyrics to that one ending song are really good even if I didn't originally appreciate the style of the song. Rewatch Value (10.0): I don't rewatch many things unless I really really really enjoy them, and this is definitely a drama I could see myself rewatching very soon! In fact I may just force some family members to sit down and watch it with me....
Overall (10.0): My first 10.0. Yes, no drama is completely perfect, but I was logically able to reason away any flaws I saw and I really wanted to give my first real 10 to a drama, so yeah I rounded this up. And if you think I'm being hesitant, Healer definitely earned every single one of these stars. There are some dramas I've rated slightly lower which I might be more inclined to rewatch because they personally resonated more with me even though I was able to find more flaws, but this is currently in my top 3 dramas, if not inhabiting first place.
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Story (5.5/10):
Frankly, there wasn't a whole lot to the story and not a whole lot of execution time for 1 hour and 20 minutes. I had recently easily watched two episodes of Reply 1988, both of which where at least as long as this whole movie, so I thought it would be quite simple to complete this.
I yawned and x2ed and even skipped a bit through the second half of the movie.
It's not bad. There's just a bit of drama with some cuteness from the main female and some flashbacks and more flashbacks and some brooding from the male lead. And that's about it.
I loved the whole store scene, "Cheaper!" and them trying to communicate;
I groaned when we got Akira.
Though it wasn't as bad as I anticipated from the first half of the film, I didn't feel any romantic connection between the leads besides the fact that she looked exactly like his fiance, even if they were cute together. It was hard to convince myself he wasn't thinking of her as Ryoko.
Acting/Cast (9.0/10):
Nothing extremely noteworthy here, but nothing that stuck out as terrible. I liked the resident bad-boy rich kid, and the main female lead did a fairly decent job of acting two characters, though we had little of the Ryoko to see anyway. Perhaps some slightly wooden acting from the men? I still can't get over the "cheaper" English from the female lead. I've rewatched that few seconds several times to make up for all that I skipped.
Music (8.0/10):
Nothing download worthy, some of it felt like I'd heard it before, but I guess in a good way since the music was pretty good.
Rewatch Value (4.0/10):
Besides the store scene, I doubt I'll dream of rewatching this again. "Cheaper" is in fact all 4 of these stars.
Overall (6.5/10):
Oh my, the ending was so kdrama though :D
If you're bored, this could be fun. If you want something that makes you think...
Think elsewhere.
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It felt really weird after watching Kim Tae Ri in Mr. Sunshine and then seeing this a few months later; actually, it was almost a little disturbing. I think it could have been one of the better Korean movies I've seen if it did not have the sexual content, though they probably couldn't have kept the plot in that case. I understand the differences in Korean movie vs TV but I have grown used to other very good Korean Movies that were very mature in gore and barely touched on anything sensual; I much prefer that. Otherwise, I'll stick the 15+ dramas.
Story (6.5):
The story is problematic to me mostly because it all revolves around sensuality and it cast a tone to the movie I couldn't truly enjoy. If that is more your thing, then it does have a fairly intricate and exciting plot.
That said, I believe most of my enjoyment in the story came from the way it was portrayed, as I mentioned earlier. I don't want to give any spoilers, but I'll just say that there are 3 parts to the movie and they don't reveal everything that happens in part 1.
Without this method of storytelling I think the plot could have been just a jumble, so it's a good thing it was done this way; props to the screenwriter, who coincidentally also worked on the Korean adaptation of Mother which is one of my all time favorite dramas.
We all also know the director but I'm not the greatest fan of his works though Oldboy is irrefutably a well done movie. If I could enjoy the theme, then I believe the story portion would get a higher rating, but I can't handle it. Sue me, to each their own.
Acting/Cast (10.0):
Of course, this is a phenomenal cast. I don't think I can say much beyond it was very well acted. Kim Tae Ri is one of my favorite actresses after seeing Mr. Sunshine, and to be honest, after seeing the story prior to watching, the only reason I still went forward with my viewing was because of her. Everyone else in the cast was very well done, especially the Count and the Uncle. I've not seen much of Kim Min Hee, but nothing to complain about from there; obviously a very seasoned actress. I think one of the most impressive parts is that everyone seems so fluent in Korean and Japanese!
Music (5.0):
Often I'll give the music portion a high rating if I felt it wasn't unique or especially good but fit with the drama and didn't detract at all. I have to say this did a fairly good job, but there were 1 or 2 instances where I frowned at what I was hearing. It was still pretty tasteful and there was a fair amount without music, but I heard nothing especially interesting.
Rewatch value (1.0):
So yeah, I'm never going to watch this again.
Overall (5.5):
Is anyone still with me? At the end of the movie, I was fairly pleased with the progression and then woah here we go again... you'll know what I mean. Like seriously did you have to do that... I'm scarred for life.
If you think I'm harsh because blah blah I can't handle it, okay fine, I was home-schooled and grew up on Winnie the Pooh and Mr. Rogers so sue me. I remember the first time I realized Korean entertainment wasn't all prudish and fade to black was when I watched Little Girl K and there was suddenly a bared breast. It literally shocked me; the reason I'd grown so attached at that point to Kdramas was because, after just moving out of my parent's house, I had marathoned and quickly grown disillusioned with a ton of western TV shows and movies with only a handful of ones I actually enjoyed. Compare to what I found when stumbling upon Kdramas; it was like a whole new pasture of green grass without a thistle in sight. There were plenty of Kdramas I didn't find very interesting, but I didn't drop them because the content was literally abhorrent and stupid (except Boys over Flowers).
In the end I actually did enjoy Little Girl K because the nudity was far from the main content and wasn't really dwelt on either. Some of my favorite western movies are ones rated R with no sexual content in them and I found that almost everything I came upon in the Korean world had enough maturity and gore to not be a stupid teen show (gag at almost every single western teen show, not just the bad acting...) but was almost without exception less sexual than any of the aforementioned western teen shows.
I can still remember patiently watching 21 episodes of Shining Inheritance to be rewarded with a kiss! Now that's what I'm talking about!
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Story (7.0):
Okay, first off, a great premise and idea behind this story. I've seen some complain about a slow start, but I actually liked that pacing and thought the whole setup was pretty well done.
How can I say this in as few words as possible... well, the whole thing felt paced like the setup. I know the action and "drama" increased but it felt like someone was reading a book in monotone. As the story progressed, I didn't really dislike anything that was happening, but when that ending hit, I was like, what are you doing. No. That's what you wanted to do? And then I thought back on the rest of the story and was like let's rewind way back here and start making a whole new storyline.
Honestly, the end was more boring than the beginning.
Acting/Cast (7.5):
I think my only issue with the actors in this is not that they did a lackluster job portraying what they were supposed to, but that what they were supposed to portray was fairly lackluster. Jun Ji Hyun is one of my favorite actresses in general but I think my favorite cast in this movie was the dog. He was really good at sleeping like a human. Honorable mention to the drowning fish.
Music (6.0):
Rockabye, don't you cry, go to sleeeep little viewer...
Rewatch Value (6.0):
I kind of want to rewatch it so I can better glue together some plot points I was figuring out in a first watch, but the idea honestly bores me and I'd much rather try watching the American remake.
Overall (6.5):
I don't think it was worth staying up late on a work night. It was a great premise and not a terrible execution, but it lacked any spark. It's not (well, not completely) because there's little to no actual meet and greet chemistry between the two, but the whole thing just felt muted and it had a very flat ending in my opinion. There was a climax and build to resolution and it just didn't fizz. This movie could have used some more carbonation.
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Story (10.0):
With more than twice the episodes of the first season, there is a lot more added on to this story.
Some of my favorite parts and characters in this story were greatly impacted by the first season which I have to give major props to that season for. Not only did it do a good job of setting up the world we now more fully dive into, but having watched it lends a weight to the current character traits of the different characters and how they react to situations. More than once throughout this season, we can see Chagum being influenced by his experience with Balsa, and it also helps show how much the new characters are being influenced as well. Balsa herself, now four years later, is not immune to change either.
As far as the new story goes, I can also see it going to be a great backstory (without the four year gap) for the next season which yes, I still have yet to watch.
Chagum is older and is sent on a diplomatic/supportative (suicide) mission by his father and meets a few new friends on the way. And yes, one of them is a similarly aged female :)
Balsa also meets new characters, and I was impressed by how defined and unique (think the Red Eye pirate) some of the side characters were.
Balsa has her quest to complete with the new child Alsa, but the full arc leads to her and Chagum potentially being reunited in the quest to save New Yogo from the encroaching Talsh army.
I can't quite say it's at Lord of the Rings levels, but this story is pretty impressive, and to a level that's never attempted in Kdramas (that I've seen), and rarely done well in Cdramas (in my opinion).
Acting/Cast (9.0):
When I reviewed the first season, I had only seen Ayase Haruka in one other show (a movie actually). However, I have since rectified that shortcoming, and have seen a fair bit more (though I still have a long way to go).
Honestly, I'm not sure if I enjoy her more as a spear-wielding (or martial arts queen) or as a romantic lead. There is no doubt she's my favorite Japanese actress I've discovered to date.
Chagum, I was a bit wary of at first, but this new actor did a great job of carrying on from the younger role, and in some scenes, I could almost believe they were the same person. So props also to whoever cast him.
There are several new characters in this show, as mentioned, that I fully enjoyed, including the new female friend for Chagum, who were all cast very well. Combine that with the fact that there was little with Torogai who was by far my least favorite character from the original season, and the cast here is a winner.
Music (10.0):
It doesn't add much above the original soundtrack, but that received a well deserved 10 out of 10, and I can't give this any less. Seriously, this OST has stuck with me.
Rewatch Value (9.0):
I don't rewatch shows very often. The first season received an 8 on this category from myself, and I'll admit part of that is how much fun it is in such a short amount of time, despite not being perfect. This show tops that one and even though it's 5 hours longer, I would much rather rewatch this season than that one.
Overall (9.5):
I'm actually very impressed with this series and I wish more people on MDL would add it. I've heard all good things about the third season, so hopefully I'll watch that too and get a review up at some point.
Signing off with the title track playing in my head...
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Story (9.0):
I found that the setting for this story was really intriguing, despite some, in my opinion, overly weirdly portrayed elements, and this is coming from someone who neither saw the anime or read any form of the books, so I'm crediting this merely from its own merits.
For a four episode season, it would be hard to get bogged down and there is no way you'll find this season even slightly boring.
All the action scenes with Balsa and her spear were very rewarding, and the last episode especially made her look very awesome! :D
Throughout the show, you were able to see as characters progressed and grew and saw the rewards of their labors and the results of hard work. I felt some of the characters were barely fleshed out at all, but I'm sure we'll see more of them in the second season, since this was just 4 episodes anyway. Keep in mind though, our main characters are by no means 2-dimensional.
Acting/Cast (9.0):
Most of the acting was good.
I'd only ever seen Ayase (Balsa) in a feature film where she had a much different character and I wasn't very impressed with the movie, but she really pulls this off and I found her acting to be mostly very impeccable.
Music (10.0):
An incredible soundtrack! From the moment that opening piece played, I was in love with the music. I would call it orchestral with Asian elements throw in, which is definitely right up my alley. I have this soundtrack on my phone and it is my most listened to Asian drama OST, with many of the tracks being in my all time favorites. I'd rank some of the tracks equal with pieces by John Williams, Ennio Morricone and Hans Zimmer. In fact, track 8 (of the top of my head) transports me right into Zimmer's score for Interstellar. I'd watch this whole thing again just for the music.
Rewatch Value (8.0):
I really am not a rewatcher, as I've stated in some of my other review. I only watch productions more than once if I really, really, enjoyed them or if plenty of time has passed. I really enjoyed this, but it wasn't per se an all time favorite; that being said, I can definitely see myself rewatching this in a few months.
Overall (9.0):
Highly Recommended! Be prepared for some awesome fighting scenes, some weird looking creatures, a vibrant world, real characters, unrealistic Kings, more awesome fighting, an amaaazing soundtrack... Oh and there might be a minor cliffhanger, but it's okay because it's not the main story of this season... However, it will still have you rushing to season 2!
P.S. I found some of the cinematography a bit... questionable, but it doesn't detract and certainly has it's own place I guess...
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Story (10.0):
This story... I'm personally a fan of both historical and modern day dramas and everything in-between, and while I generally am NOT a fan of time-travel, this plot just fused historical, time-travel, and modern in together in such a way that I couldn't deny the genius. There was a bit of stuff with the time travel and devices used that I felt uneasy with, but it all made perfect sense and couldn't be argued with. I believe this is one of those dramas where everything was planned out ahead of time and it definitely shows.
The only part that I felt dragged a bit was the very first episode when everything was being set up, but after that it was a pleasure to watch. I still get goosebumps from the scene with a time overlay... You'll know what I'm talking about once you watch it.
Acting/Cast (10.0):
Wow. One of my all time favorite couples! They even dated in real life afterward, though they've broken up since. Used to be my favorite drama couple ever, though there are some close runner ups now. The supporting cast is all decent, and play their parts well, even if the characters themselves can be annoying.
Music (8.0):
It's not extremely memorable music by any chance, but it fits the drama very well, often using that dramatic orchestral element that you might find in a historical drama. The songs were also very decent and didn't make me want to cringe, so that's a plus. Nothing I'd download to play back, but I'm giving it an optimistic rating because it fits well enough.
Rewatch Value (9.0):
I have yet to rewatch it. That is ever since I finished it, because as soon as I finished the drama I went back and watched all my favorite parts, which coincidentally happened to include both Yoo In Ah and Ji Hyun Woo... I will definitely enjoy rewatching this one.
Overall (9.5):
After I finished this drama, I probably would have told you that it was my favorite drama ever. Anymore I'm not so certain, but it's at least a contender... Go watch it, and if by episode 8 you don't like it, I'm sorry for you.
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High School King of Savvy
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From a story perspective, this drama is a solid win in my book. I always love the secret identity trope and this is a perfect example. Mixing it with Noona romance is just a bonus. Of course you get one of my least favorite tropes: a second male lead with a sad backstory who is technically a much better choice of partner and inexplicably can't seem to get a girl so has to get his heart broken by the FL. I get that a lot of dramas would have little to no drama in them without these second leads, but I seriously get very tired of it. There were also some minor issues through the drama where you wonder at the choices the characters make that introduce needless drama, but overall this story is just so much fun, you can pretty much ignore everything else.
Acting/Cast (7.0/10):
Here's where I'm slightly conflicted. There are some great roles in this movie and the whole cast is undeniably talented. Seo In Guk's acting as the two brothers is especially great and so much fun to watch.
BUT I couldn't like Lee Ha Na's character portrayal of Jung Soo Young (yeah, the FL) and it seriously stunted my speed of watching this drama. In fact, before finally completing it I started and dropped it numerous times.
Now, I don't have anything against Lee Ha Na. I've enjoyed her acting in more recent and serious dramas like Voice where there isn't anything to complain about, and such older and more similar characters like in Merry Mary. So perhaps it was her directions for the character? A great number of the mannerisms and characteristics Lee Ha Na used to portray this character were just so bothersome. Often times, it felt really fake. Not fake as in bad acting from Lee Ha Na, but I felt like the character was being fake. That laugh especially got me every time. So bothersome.
Did anyone else feel this way? I don't mind watching dorky characters who could use a makeover, but something about this one didn't work for me.
The character and the actress are both great, but together it didn't mix.
To wrap up this section, I have to say that I really enjoyed the Grandpa character! He was so much fun and honestly looked like he had so much fun playing that part.
Music (6.5/10):
Plenty of fun tracks to go along with all the hijinks, but nothing I'd choose to play by itself.
Rewatch Value (6.0/10.0):
The benefit to starting and dropping a drama multiple times, is that you know at least the first part is completely rewatchable! :) There are parts of this drama I'll probably come back to now and then and others I'll never watch ever again thank you very much. It took me long enough (think years) to get through this drama the first time.
Overall (7.0/10):
I had a lot fun watching this drama, but it took many false starts and recap reading to finally finish it. I can see why it would be highly rated, but I can't in all honesty give it a higher score than this. That said, I don't regret finally pushing through to the end!
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Recently, I watched the 2009 version of Mulan. While I can't call that my favorite movie ever, it did a lot of stuff right both in character development, story line, and pace.
How to compare this with that? I couldn't help drawing parallels the whole time I watched this movie, but it's not fair at all to do a comparison.
This is a completely different kind of movie as a Huangmei opera musical film. At first I was skeptical, but the sets and performances are charming and endearing. If that's all you're looking for and you can enjoy the style of music, this will be a fun yet dated watch.
Personally, I didn't get drawn in, since it has the 2d characters and overexaggerated movements you'd expect from a literal opera film translation. But the main character was fun to watch! Disney's Mulan is a flowery and romanticized fluff piece while 2009 Mulan was a grim yet hopeful outlook on humanity in the darkest places and toughest choices.
This toes the line between the toe, never being very grim and dramatic nor flowery and romantic. It's a show, an opera. It feels more like a night out watching the stage and I found it quirky and cute.
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There is a also a shower scene with the main character that really doesn't hide much and lots of swearing (in English mostly).
Story (6.0):
Okay, the story is pretty simple. Girl was assassin, girl retires (pretends she's dead). Gang boss's son sees her and messes with her family. Girl goes on revenge spree to kill the son.
That's all it is and I'm not saying that's bad. In fact, if any of you have seen John Wick, you can tell from the way I worded it that the basic plot is a lot like that story. It could even be argued that the plot for Maria has a better emotional pull than the plot for John Wick.
However, where John Wick shines is clearly the action sequences and this film can't hold a candle to it. I'm not saying the action sequences are bad, and they have some good use of Filipino Martial Arts, but they're obviously staged and don't feel real compared to the brutal quality and obvious training from John Wick (all of the John Wick series).
Acting/Cast (7.0):
The acting is fairly good, mostly from the main character. A lot of the rest had pretty cheesy lines they had to deliver and I was impressed with how well they pulled off those cheesy lines. Still, cheesy is cheesy lol.
Music (7.0):
There were a lot of epic songs played in this, but I didn't think they did a good job of going with one as a highlight for an awesome sequence. It felt like the music faded out too quickly. But the tracks weren't bad.
Rewatch Value (7.0):
I honestly probably won't rewatch this anytime soon because I know much better action movies (e.g. John Wick, The Villainess), but this is one of the most watchable Filipino movies I've seen and I think has a new level of quality I've never seen in them before.
Overall (6.5):
For me personally, the hilarity of random blood squirts (e.g. bat to the upper back, neck explodes) and a bit of woodenness in the otherwise pretty well choreographed fight sequences combined with some cheesy dialog kept throwing me out of the story and reduced the amount of fun I had. But it's still a pretty good action movie and if you think you can turn your brain off, I recommend it.
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This is not a romantic comedy. It's also not a tragedy, nor is it a plain romance.
Story (8/10):
The basic premise of the story is pretty simple. A mother who has neglected her son due to her company gets cancer. She gets a live-in nurse who helps bring the two back together. Overall, there isn't anything super complicated or exciting beyond this plot, but I thought it was written well and the cast did a great job bringing the script to life. I see how parts could have been flat with a less talented cast, but there was also a bit of added emotional lines with the nurses family that I think made this a decently solid story. I'm staying spoiler free so I'm not going to give any more details, but the story is emotional while being uplifting and giving a message of just living life to the fullest with no regrets.
Acting/Cast (9/10):
Simply put, what made this movie for me was the cast, mainly the mother Vivian Rabaya and the nurse Jaica Domingo. These two were great on their own and when put together it was perfect. One of my favorite scenes was the two of them talking together outside in the evening and getting very emotional. The scene was very well acted especially from Angel Locsin (Jaica). The same holds true for almost every other scene the two are in.
Then there's Xian Lim, who plays the son Albert Mitra. I was a little less than enthused with his acting and I felt that the more the movie went on the more I was unbelieving in what he was trying to portray. He wasn't terrible by any means; he had a few emotional scenes that were not too bad. However, every now and again he'd be saying a simple line and it would sound really forced. All that said, he's not bad looking and had pretty good chemistry with Angel. I mostly forgave him with the scenes of them at the end. :)
The rest of the cast is less of a highlight in the movie due to the nature of the storyline, but there were also some good performances from side characters and no one who I could pick out as a bad actor.
Music (6.5/10):
Part of the job an OST is supposed to due is blend seamlessly with the visuals and I can say that this didn't stand out in any negative way. However, a truly good OST will stand out in the opposite way and be noticed not just for highlighting the movie, but being good as a standalone (at least, IMHO). This score is fine in portraying the emotions of the movie, but also nothing noteworthy.
Rewatch Value (7/10):
I can actually see myself rewatching this at some point. If I did, it would probably be to see Jaica and Vivian again. I'm going to have to try to find more Filipino dramas in this vein since it's one of the only ones I've genuinely enjoyed so far...
Overall (7.625/10):
I think as an emotional, uplifting, thought provoking movie, I've definitely seen better. But it's also really enjoyable and the cast was (mostly) a pleasure to watch. There's also a sprinkle of romance (drama free) for all the romantics out there that adds that extra bit of flavor to an already enjoyable film. However, if you're watching this for the romance, that's not what this movie is about. I'd still recommend it anyway...
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