This review may contain spoilers
It was more deeper than I expected
One step ahead from other KBL . I never watched queer shows before so I had no idea but now I am touched . This is definitely an exception .
Disclaimer - This is my personal review from my own feelings . Thank You . ( Ahead Spoiler !!! )
OVERVIEW ~ Go Yeong , a gay man who is being unable to escape from this homophobic society . Trying to make his bore life slightly better by involving sexually with so many strangers . He is HIV positive but it was never revealed . The story is centered in his life . He tried to escape from this filthy situation but failed . He met Nam Gyu and both of them involved with each other, Go Yeong though Mr . Gyu was his true love but suddenly he realized this was not ' true ' love but familiarization . His best friend Mi Ae always supported him but after her marriage Go Yeong again became lonely . Then one day he met Gyu Ho and they fell in love with each other . After staying with him so long , Yeong finally realized he never felt so happy in his life which he is feeling now .
POSITIVE -
Acting - Top notch acting of every actors . The way Nam Yoon Su expressed the character perfectly is remarkable .
Visuals - Visuals are always best in Korean BL dramas . Here is no exception .
Cinematography - Definitely top tier .
Story - This is more deeper than common BL dramas . I am so glad that they have not showed the traditional romance
here . They tried to make this drama different and obviously they have succeed .
Scripts - The every sentence of Go Yeong is heart touching . The writer created the character Gyu Ho with so much
positive thoughts .
Music - I liked the light music at the end of the drama .
What I liked - I liked mostly the hugging scene in ep 6 in the bar . The hug tells so many emotions . And also every scenes of Go
Yeong and Gyu Ho including lying under the rain on the street , the lantern scene on ep 8 etc .
The ending is definitely heartwarming . When both of them made a wish with the lantern and caught each others
hands ohh this is definitely one of the best romantic and heart touching scene in the entire drama . The
friendship between Mi Ae and Gu Yeong is so lovely . When she encouraged Yeong at her wedding with singing
that funny but emotional song is really made my day happy .
What I have not liked -There are some scenes which are repeatedly . They showed the intimate scenes many times as I am not
into it so I felt uncomfortable sometimes . First two episodes are kinda boring for me . But honestly 95%
scenes of this story I liked .
OVERALL - I think this drama will be one of the best re watched KBL . Everything of this drama has deeper meaning , many learning things , what a gay man's life looks like in real life . Overall a solid 9.5/ 10 for me . ( ｡•ㅅ•｡ )
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This review may contain spoilers
Not a BL but worth every penny the taxpayer spent....
Of course this is not a BL, it's a drama about a gay man. We see a real depiction of gay life in Korea with all the harsh realities Korean society (and many other) offers. There is no pink-washing of reality, there is just reality in an unapologetic way. Of course we wished for Ko Young to have a happy life. But life is tough, espeically as woman or gay man. I am glad the Korean culture ministry spend tax money on this show, because it's an important piece of education too. And because it's not a BL, we don't get the happy end Ko so much deserves.One of the best gay shows ever produced even when some parts of the story were not perfect or not expanded and explained in a way I wished for (mother/son for example). On the plus side is the great acting, especially for the MLs who never played a gay character (and went into it giving 110%), and the stunning visuals.
So overall I can only recommand everyone to watch this series, 400 minutes worth spending!
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Lonely in the City
Completed.I told sunset abt you is still my favorite; hard to beat the intensity that it packed in such a short run. but this comes close, ep 1-5 were stellar. It fizzles a little bit from 6 onward but I feel like it a great representation of growing up. When young we constantly look for excitement while trying to
Learn as much from the universe as we can. As we evolve we realize that the mundane is inevitable and come to peace with it.
I hope this isn’t reduce to being seen as just a BL, it’s not. It’s an exploration of growth and loneliness. I hope people who are not interested in the genre still watch it. Give it a chance.
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1A man who had overflowing oceans of love but was clueless of tides and still survived !
Love in the big city is a bold exploration from South Korea of love, identity and complexities of being queer in a society that often makes you feel at odds with itself. The series takes us through the turbulent journey of Go Yeong, depicting his struggles, with family and societal pressure and yearning for love that sometimes feels both profound and frustrating.Go Yeong's journey is a mosaic of heartache, never-ending longing and resilience to push through. If you go with the expectations of neat resolutions and everything black and white from this drama, you will be disappointed. His growth is portrayed with a certain nuance and realism, unfolding slowly and frustratingly over time.
The pressure he faces doesn't magically vanish overnight and the show captures the tension beautifully. It portrays the burden of his mother's denial regarding his sexuality and the struggles that stem from it. Sadly we live in a society where acceptance is such a luxury rather than a given.
His journey left a bittersweet taste in my mouth that felt earned and true to life. Yeong was a man who was loved throughout, sometimes too deeply to make him drown and others or sometimes with superficial pleasures to make him realise that the chaotic, mundane affectionate bond he left behind now lingers like a soft ache, a reminder of what love actually once was.
The series addresses heavy themes but it also highlights that joy can exist even in the darkest of times. Yeong's camaraderie with his gay friends brought such a vibrant color to this gloomy tale. Their scenes together drinking and dancing was a good counterbalance from the serious moments.
Found family trope is one of my favourites and his friendship with Mi Ae captured it beautifully. Honestly, I want what these two had, to choose to stand with each other through thick and thin with unwavering support, providing a safe harbour to each other amidst their daily exhausting grinds. Their bond is a gentle reminder that home is where the heart is and family is where you feel understood and accepted.
Though their friendship was not the sole focus of the story , it was beautiful until it lasted and the way they portrayed how both of them outgrew that bond was heartwrenching but so realistic!
Although it does have pacing issues here and there but its realistic depiction of the struggles and messy portrayal of love makes me want to overlook the flaws.
Overall, this stands out as an impactful drama where the MC is not a perfect man. It's messy but executed in a way where you want to sometimes knock some sense into him and sometimes just wrap your hands around him and tell him, it's going to be okay. It's not just a love story or your typical BL drama.
Recommended if you are looking for a thoughtful and emotional exploration of an imperfect character in a perfectly imperfect world.
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The haters are crying hehe!
I like how it had lots of representation as well as diverse gay men (some stereotypical and non-stereotypical portrayals). The story was really well paced, I was surprised by good character growth in just 2 episodes, and the cinematography + lighting was just MAGICAL. All the actors did so well, I was fully immersed in every scene. Even the balance between comedy, happiness, cutesy and sadness was so good. Everyone should give this a chance.Was this review helpful to you?
Unafraid, Unapologetic and Raw
After a long time I have watched a series that left me completely satisfied. The writer, director, creative team, actors, producers all did a phenomenal job of bringing a complicated subject on screen in the most poetic way. I commend their bravery that they could look beyond the hate.The story is a unique exploration of one man's inner world while he navigates through his identity and tries to find love in a big, brutal city. He stumbles, makes mistakes of gigantic proportion which leaves him broken and scarred for life. Yet he stands up, fumbles but steadily moves forward. The story explores this journey and shows many things which generally is off limit for romance dramas. It bravely discards the theory of love heals all! Love doesn't. In fact misplaced love can scar and damage someone beyond retribution. Through the struggles and triumphs of a gay man's love life, the drama taps into this often unexplored side of romance.
All the actors acted brilliantly. The production quality was top notch and the star of the show was the screenplay where it did not drop for a single second. I commend the creators again for creating such magic on screen.
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This might be the Korea’s best lgbtq+ film ever to have been made
This isn’t only a drama where we go straight into the scandalous stuff which is great: We get to see what life is truly like, when being a part of the lgbtq community. The way Nam Yoonsu wanted to act in this movie made it even better, he didn’t care abt what the fans of his in Korea would think cuz it’s acting. And I do appreciate him for portraying this character. The drama brought me tears dripping down my face and a lots of good moments too. I recommend you to watch it cause it has a great story line and good actors which brings the act to life, but if you’re uncomfortable with lgbtq I think you should definitely pass on this one.Was this review helpful to you?
you're still you
my perception of nam yoon su as an actor has grown exponentially since seeing this drama. his performance as the flawed yet poignant and poetic go young left me laughing, smiling, and in tears multiple times throughout the drama. his chemistry with each of his love interests was amazing and i can safely say that this might be the best cast i have witnessed in a korean bl so far.honestly, this was a beautifully sad watch (hence the slightly lower rewatch value), but the visuals, music, acting and dialogue are an easy 10/10 for me. this drama is an absolute win for korean bl, in my opinion. hope to see nam yoon su choose projects as interesting as this in the future because he definitely has the talent for it!
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SPEEDING UNIVERSE AND CRABBY TABBY
Critic:This might be korea's best LGBTQ+ show of all time.
As a GAY person the Story was top tier, it was very realistic and well executed, every parts contains key memories to proceed with the other, pacing was good, Cinematography was just MIND BLOWING it definitely surpasses the cinematography of The Eight Sense, Like Your Name Engraved Herein Level.
Actors are visually attractive, they slayed their role, although Nam Yoon-Su was forced feminine on his role or he was a gay-masculine but he did a great job, I can see myself on him..
Overall this was worth of watching don't skip anything and prepare tissues.
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Worth the watch and this is the perfect KBL of this year.
It's worth the watch. I've just watched the first episode tonight and I already knew this will be the best BL I'll ever watch this year. The duration is already a plus for me since I really really yearn a BL with a packed plot and dialogues. And it DELIVERED. First episode and I already saw how this is a well produced work. From the art, the cinematography, there were no dull moments, perfect comedic timings, nice dialogues, well written characters and all that real shit. This much things to say and I've just been in the first episode 😂Was this review helpful to you?
THE BEST AND MOST REALISTIC LGBTQ+ SHOW I HAVE SEEN!!
I already had pretty high expectations considering the cast, budget and the fact that this is based on an acclaimed novel but this show was so perfect!Pros:
1. love the cinematography
2. LOVE THE CAST
3. IT IS SO REALISTIC LIKE OMG
4. real people with real problems
5. even though I am neither male nor gay I felt like i could relate to their issues on a very personal level
6. I could see love: Nam yoon soo is a great actor and his co stars are just as brilliant because every person played their role....The way he looked at his co-stars made me think he was in love with every single one
7. The depiction of his character: I love how his character incorporates certain stereotypically gay characteristics in a naturally and in-excessive ways (usually you get to see them being overly "girly" or extremely "manly" as an attempt to distinguish them but I like that he is a mix of both)
8. The way they brought up "kylie" (if ykyk) it felt so REAL...kylie was unwanted and he ignored her but she is an undeniable part of his life and I love how he showed his reactions
9. Mi-ae: after seeing mi-ae and go-young's friendship I felt like I NEEDED IT...The way their relationship progressed was also
extremely natural and her future is also a less talked of circumstance
10. NAM YOON SOO'S SMILE: THIS MAN'S SMILE BE SAVING THE UNIVERSE BECAUSE HE LOOKS LIKE A LITERAL ANGEL
Cons:
I didn't have any particular cons but I do wish they had a special OST that would remind me of the show every time I heard it.
Its high time that korean media had some diversity and I think rather than judging something based on the LGBTQ+ aspect we should see it as a show with great storytelling
All in all I loved this drama and I will recommend anyone and everyone who likes realistic shows (without any biases) to watch it...
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