second half of 2022 dramas/movies

COMPLETED

another great performance from jackson yi, as expected. A good underdog rising up kind of movie, but it was neither as dramatic nor as desperate nor as touching as it could have been.

DROPPED

The rivalry between their families was hilarious lol. I pretty much just got bored and couldn't keep watching.

COMPLETED

I enjoyed the last third a lot more than the beginning, mostly because the ML finally went through his character development. honestly props to the writers for the ML's character, he grew as a person but still kept a lot of his character traits. he was definitely a really carefully crafted character. FL was a bit more cardboard cutout, more generic and less unique than the ML.

ON HOLD?? DROPPED???

tbh it's so boring TnT. it's basically a cookie cutter xianxia, although I will admit the cgi was gorgeous. zhou dong yu is adorable but even she couldn't salvage anything good out of the FL's character. the ML is literally just a block of ice. as usual. I don't even understand their chemistry, it's basically nonexistent.

ON HOLD 11/12

I'm so close to finishing but I just can't bring myself to lol, I'm just bored of it. The school/rich people drama was a bit hard to watch but it was certainly interesting. The chemistry between the leads with pretty good up to a certain point. The FL was entertaining, up to a certain point. The ML began to feel very personality-less nearing the end. A surprising lack of actual cheerleading in this show, it's mainly just rich people education melodrama

COMPLETED

so rushed with plot and chemistry that made no sense but at least the leads looked good together lol. great emotional scenes! the only thing that really drew me in. I recommend watching only if you really, really like yang yang's smile, so much so that you can ignore everything else.

COMPLETED

felt a bit life-changing watching this. so horrifying yet inspiring at the same time.

COMPLETED

SO CUTE OML and I kind of almost cried too??

DROPPED 3/20

the FL is so annoying... I cannot with her... acting is also disappointing compared to the first season.

ON HOLD 14/16

another one where I was almost there but got bored. X drama was overdrawn. chemistry between the leads was cute, but the ML is too overbearing lol. romance between the second leads was both concerning and also had no chemistry at all. the FL is likable enough, though

COMPLETED

cute cute cute surprisingly really cute?? but also kind of dark at the same time. great acting on the part of both leads.

COMPLETED

felt like they wasted the potential of the second season. instead of a mature, healthy drama focusing on dealing with trauma and past histories, they decided to stir up random drama. honestly I thought there were way more realistic ways to achieve the level of angst they wanted lol. yoo ah and her mom were adorable, though :)

DROPPED

got that cliche kdrama rom com vibe lol. I would've enjoyed it more if the ML wasn't so toxic. the writers tried way too hard to make the FL seem clever and "hard-to-get" when she ended up just being boring.

COMPLETED

cute :). biggest bonus was getting to look at yokohama ryusei's face for ten episodes. the chemistry was honestly still a bit lacking though. I also feel like some of the themes could've been handled better and more thoroughly. I love kouko and her dog though!

COMPLETED

the second-hand embarrassment was real in this one lol. but I appreciate a sort of (??) realistic take on teenage hormones and confusion, plus a bit of an internalized homophobia theme. kudos to teh's brother and tarn for being good people. also the skinship was the most natural I've ever seen, I was a little shocked. #savedramaleadsfromawkwardonesidedhugs

COMPLETED

interesting concept! I loved the anti-aging theme, it was pretty cute. I ended up disliking kimura tatsunari's acting, though. it felt too stiff, and it was especially noticeable in such a soothing, natural drama. there was also something missing from their chemistry, although I can't really tell what

COMPLETED

pretty funny, liked the bromance. the leads are absolute losers and I mean that in the most affectionate way. it wasn't that that interesting or funny, though.

COMPLETED

started this in 2021 I believe. took a long time to get through it because it was kind of boring. a lot of political scheming, so I only recommend if you like those kinds of things because honestly the romance was kind of trash. I only finished this as a workout drama, which I think is a testament to how boring it is.

COMPLETED

copied from my notes lol: loved the almost slice-of-life feel in a historical setting (most prominent in the middle). finally we get a historical drama that isn't all bloody politics and tragic romance lol. chemistry between zpe and gqf was especially strong in the beginning, although it kind of fizzled out imo. it was still strong but it got just a teeny bit cheesy, but I didn't mind that much bc it was cute and also more intimate. politics were pretty boring, I didn't care much for that plot arc. it was definitely not a strength compared to other historicals and also the plotting wasn't intriguing at all. I enjoyed the business focus the most :)

COMPLETED

very wholesome and cute and feel-good. I love all the friendships! slice-of-lifey, nothing happens, etc etc and I ate it up.

COMPLETED

super boring, nonexistent chemistry between either of the couples, only managed to finish it because it was short.

DROPPED

didn't make it too far with this one. I strongly dislike time loops lol just because I get bored with the same thing happening over and over again, and also I don't like how progress restarts. tbh the way tin approaches tol is lowkey kind of creepy without context, like if I were tol I'd be pretty scared. personally not a fan of tee's acting, it's pretty stiff and unnatural

COMPLETED

kind of heartbreaking to watch in that they are terrified people will find out they are gay and force themselves to hide that fact. it was surprisingly not a very romantic movie, or maybe I just wasn't focused on that aspect? it seemed to deal more with their fear and frustration at the world as a consequence of falling in love with each other.

DROPPED

it felt so stiff and forced? they're calling each other cute when nothing cute is going on lol. they tried really hard to get that quiet, super romantic vibe but it felt very awkward. park bogum's smile is cute but he seemed like a child in the first ep.

DROPPED 3/24

first of all I ran out of non vip episodes lol. but the drama itself was nothing special. FL has that not-like-other-girls vibe, ML is cold cold cold as usual. dubbing was not great and didn't match liu xie ning's mouth movements well?? acting was obviously subpar, but I already expected that from a low budget drama.

ON HOLD 1/22

actually really refreshing to finally have the FL be the bold one who flirts with the ML with no shame. the ML is cold yet again! I'm already pretty bored of whatever he's investigating. the FL also started getting on my nerves. but I might revisit in the future since it doesn't seem half bad.

DROPPED 19/40

this is so boring OML IT'S SO BORING. like I would literally doze off every episode if I wasn't watching this while exercising. It had good potential, I thought it was going to be a cool martial arts drama, and the first ten eps were promising. went downhill after that and became politics politics all the time and idgaf about the politics because it wasn't even interesting politics. both the fl and the ml are so boring too, and I hate that they're supposed to be equals but the fl always feels overshadowed by the ml.

COMPLETED

absolutely in love with cheng shao shang who is 100% a boss girl. she's hilarious and despite her intelligence, she actually acts like a teenager. this role suits zhao lu si perfectly (which I find is the main factor in why I like some of her works and heavily dislike others). ling bu yi... is honestly not that great. there's something missing from wu lei's tough and cold portrayal, which I think has something to do with the lack of subtlety of his emotions. he looks more angry than cold tbh.

also, not a fan of the romantic development ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

COMPLETED

toxicity at its finest here. to be honest this second chance made me realize this drama is not as bad as I initially thought. it was easier to ignore all of the 1 dimensional-ness when they become closer to each other lol. also the toxicity, while I 100% do not condone, was kind of entertaining, especially since the fl seemed to be aware that it was toxic. 10 eps fly by when you scream "get out of that relationship girl!" to the fl the whole time. the side couples were lowkey kind of cute! or was it just me?

park jae eon's development was just the worst. I don't know if they did it on purpose, but it did not work out. they should've either kept him 100% toxic or given him more depth (which I thought they were hinting at, but then they just abandoned it)

[final thoughts]

COMPLETED

only four eps but have the fast forward button ready, people. park hyung sik was cute, obviously. han so hee was cute, obviously. their friendship was pretty cute, not many complaints. but it felt like nothing happened. usually I like this because it's a sign of slice of life, but this time literally nothing happens. barely anything sweet or cute or memorable. I also didn't really like the lack of differentiation between love and friendship in their relationship, but I can see if that's what they were going for. ALSO we were robbed of cute domestic scenes!! grr!

[1]  [2]

COMPLETED

boring. story was boring, characters were boring, everything was boring. not even zero chemistry, practically negative chemistry. (not really the fault of the actors, more the fault of the pacing and the writing). acting was unimpressive.

REVIEW

DROPPED 17/45

I'm a bit upset by the fact that the FL isn't ruthless lol. I get that it's supposed to endear her to the ML that she's so morally pure or whatever, but like she doesn't have to give a crap about the ML or anything, I just wanted her to be ruthless for her own reputation. seven tan isn't a bad actress but her smile looked so forced at times in this drama, it was a bit painful to watch! overall, while the harem politics weren't boring, the chemistry certainly was.

DROPPED 3/6

this was actually super boring lol, my finger literally never left the skip button. acting was stilted and awkward. also there was like no build-up in chemistry??? there was also an unnecessary amount of couples (I know there's only three, but I think it should've just been the main couple).

ON HOLD 18/32

yeah my netflix subscription ended lol...

I honestly really don't like the FL. she's pretty selfish and also indecisive, and it's making the ML's life worse, although to be fair the ML is also making his own life worse. the slightly morally gray emotional infidelity is also a bit hard to get through because I just know it's going to blow up in their faces. also I was expecting a comforting slice-of-life, not this high blood pressure these characters are so dumb melodrama, which may be my fault.

[1]  [2]  [3]  [4]

ON HOLD 13/20

another victim of  the netflix subscription termination, although I'm pretty sure I will be dropping this.

what can I say? there was so much potential. the effects were super cool. but it was just so boring. I wanted to see the FL be a girlboss and she just ended up being the ML's sidekick. plot drags, conflict isn't that interesting. I'm only interested in the crown prince and his entry into their friend group atp.

[1]

COMPLETED

y'all.... this really isn't it.

REVIEW

DROPPED 2/8

not the worst thing ever, but not in the mood to waste time after watching about youth lol. the ML was a bit too childish for my liking. I wish dramas would stop making cute = dumb and immature.

[1]

COMPLETED

ADORABLE :') I love found family. a good reminder of how great at acting zhu yi long is lol. the actress who played the little girl was also astonishingly good for someone so young.

COMPLETED

the chemistry and acting was honestly pretty top notch. it was so cute! plus it used the bickering leads trope so that's a bonus. song zu'er yet again impresses me with her acting. huang zi tao acts like himself, and that's how you know the drama's good lol. there were some side characters, didn't care much for them – except for the sml who needs to be protected at all costs

not a fan of the odd genre change, but I could live with it.

[1]  [2]  [3]  [4]  [5]  [6]  [7]  [8]  [9]  [final thoughts]

COMPLETED

one of the best friendship squad dramas I've ever watched :') I love how fleshed out each of the characters were, and how the drama was able to address both their strengths and their flaws, and how they overcame some their weaknesses. the friendship chemistry was so adorable, I can only say I wanted more of it. I'm surprised how little group moments they had for a friendship drama, and I wish they had fleshed out some of the relationships more.

loved the slice-of-life feel (as usual), although it did get a bit too dark for something I thought would be sweet and lighthearted. some of the acting from the side characters as well (sorry yoon park, you're cute but still) was a bit stiff. and none of the romances were written well lol, very flat and underdeveloped.

COMPLETED

exceeded my expectations, but only because I had set very low expectations. plot is super interesting, but I wish they focused on that more than the romance, which felt like nothing was happening. aka the romance is pretty boring, and so are the leads. the second leads are far more interesting, although a bit repulsive to watch lol. wang ze xuan carried!

REVIEW

DROPPED 2/16

idk I was just so bored. the FL and the ML are both boring and annoying because they're trying to be quirky. I think the cafe staff might have a nice dynamic but i'm too lazy to stick around to see it

COMPLETED

yo akk's smile??? literally got me through this drama. the writing was pretty bad on this one. it had the potential to be a suspenseful drama portraying a complex message of oppression in schools. and it failed both the suspense and the message. everything was anticlimactic. nothing was interesting except for akk's smile. that ending??? worst I've seen in awhile. and the romance was... well, I don't really remember how it developed but I don't think it made much sense.

ON HOLD 2/26

man I just really don't like the ML, he's annoying af. not really feeling the chemistry either, probably because he's literally 18. honestly don't know how to feel about all these age gap dramas where the younger lead is like 20 and acts like they're 15.

COMPLETED

second chance project! a great decision too. the scheming and plotting is top notch. ming lan is the goat and I love her so much. whoever said this was slice-of-life... yesss but also my blood pressure skyrocketed so many times. definitely slice-of-life with a good portion of drama and political stuff. turned me into a zhao li ying and zhu yi long fan :)))

DROPPED 2/40

tried it. didn't like it.

I dislike this "pretending to be weak to gain power" trope already. it might've worked better if the drama itself wasn't so laughably unserious. and adding in the drama of hao jia and the main wife of the second lord? I feel like they're trying too hard to make this a dramatic scheming historical when they've already settled for a more comedic atmosphere. it just doesn't work. low budget doesn't help either.

on another note, I noticed some familiar faces here from rise of phoenixes :00

COMPLETED

progressively got worse and worse. first of all, it was certainly an ambitious concept and get that they're trying to make things deep and important and stuff. but also they failed miserably. they spent most of the drama just preaching at the watchers and showing nothing. basically the message was weak and not at all powerful — which is utterly useless for a social critique drama.

other than that, the romance was mid. it was cute at first and then it became cringy somewhere along the way. a lot of the plot points were not handled well. the premise itself was pretty horrible already since it wasn't realistic at all. yeah.

DROPPED 7/30

so anti feminist to the point where it's mildly entertaining. this drama was lowkey wild. hated everyone. there were abs. dropped for self care because I deserve better

COMPLETED

the romance was boring (idk what chemistry people were talking about because it was FLAT) but bang yoo na was adorable. I wish they focused more on the father daughter dynamic (because I absolutely adored that part) and the trauma both of them definitely went through. was pleasantly surprised by the improvements in Yoon Park's acting after age of youth

DROPPED 3/17

i was feeling emotionally drained so usual that means starting a short low commitment drama.realized later that this was not actually a short drama lol but that’s ok because i dropped it anyway.

I don’t really get the hype around this drama but maybe I didn’t watch far enough? it was very cringy for me, especially the shipping and the instalove soulmate moments. very unnatural. also I can’t take either of the main leads’ personality or acting anymore. also what is with giving inand pharm such babyish personalities (maybe this is just me being too judgmental lol but the coddling was a bit off putting to me)

ON HOLD 3/11(10??)

I'M WORKING ON IT DON'T WORRY

COMPLETED

this drama managed to be toxic, frustrating, AND boring. like come on, it couldn't even reach the nevertheless bar of toxic angst, which is not even that high of a bar. the chemistry wore off very quick, although I guess it's hard to maintain chemistry when it's just a bunch of misunderstandings, pathological lying, and trust issues.

the acting was pretty good at least.

CURRENTLY WATCHING 24/29

pretty sure I started this in like august or september... so yeah... that's how it's going

CURRENTLY WATCHING 7/12

fighting!!

CURRENTLY WATCHING 3/16

sorta kinda

CURRENTLY WATCHING 34/36

will probably be my first 2023 completion <3

CURRENTLY WATCHING 24/40

covid binge watch :))