I freely admit that I watched this Kdrama for Cha Eunwoo, first and foremost. I’m a fan, sue me. But it was also a very good drama. It started as a funny rom-com but soon it became so much more. It told the story of how Christianity first came to Korea, of vaccination and female emancipation… Very intriguing themes that you rarely see in historical Kdramas.

The relationship that I loved best was the romance between Prince Yi Rim and the female historian Goo Hae Ryung. He was 20, she was 26. He was romantic, she was realistic, even cynical. They both wanted to be free but where for her it meant being able to work and having a career, not just marrying and having kids, for him it meant literally getting out of the palace where he’s been held almost a prisoner his whole life long. It was so interesting!

And the second relationship that pushed all my buttons was the one between Prince Yi Rim and the Crown Prince, Yi Jin. Yi Jin was the closest family Yi Rim had. And for Yi Jin, his little brother was the only person in the whole world that he could really trust. He adored Yi Rim. I would go as far as saying that Yi Rim was the only person Yi Jin actually loved. And because of that, the twist with Yi Rim’s true identity hit Yi Jin so hard…

This is a really great drama that’s mainly about the meaning of family, how far you’re willing to go to protect your loved ones and how much you’re willing to sacrifice for your ambition. Both thumbs up from me!

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Neo: I love you both, equally and at the same time.

It was so very apparent how much Neo loved them both but especially the way he adored Shin was amazing. Because towards Miw he was very manly heroic and protective, the typical dashing hero, you know? But the way he… mellowed around Shin, his whole behavior simply softened. Like Shin said to Miw, “[Neo] gets my sensitivities and your abrasive loud mouth.” They obviously both gave him something he needed.

And the same went for Miw and Shin. They both loved Neo very much, that was their common ground but at the end of the series, it was obvious they started to feel something for each other, too. For Miw, both Neo and Shin were softer than her but differently so. Neo was more her equal so she could be brash with him -but she couldn’t be that way with Shin without feeling guilty. Shin was squishy and soft and so he made her softer, too. For Shin, both Neo and Miw were true and genuine, but whereas Neo was kind, Miw was brutally honest.

So, if you want to watch a genuine polyamory story, not a love triangle, then do watch 3 Will Be Free. Because their poly love is not just explicit - as in sex - but also discussed openly.

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This movie is up there with TLT2 (the Neo Hou/Cheng Yi outing) as my favorite DMBJ thingy. No silly het romance of an unnecessary insert (I'm looking at you, Providence), just good old tentacles and Bromance - with the B being very silent.

Till this movie, Heihua did nothing for me. It didn't ring any bells, it left me cold and shrugging on the outskirts of this fandom. But Ji Chen and Ji Xiaobing as Hei Xiazi and Xiao Hua, respectively, did A Thing(TM) to my perception of this pairing. Like... wow.

This movie was everything I hoped for. Yeah, yeah, grave robbing (sorta), tentacled Cthulhu wannabe, that was all nice and whatnot. But the relationship between Hei Xiazi and Xiao Hua? That was perfection pure.

Like...

- when Xiao Hua first came to Hei Xiazi and Hei Xiazi learned why Xiao Hua was headed into the jungle - and then he stole Xiao Hua's ugly statuette and threw it into the pond to protect him.
- when Hei Xiazi paid the armed wannabe bandits to let Xiao Hua's expedition pass but he placed himself right next to Xiao Hua, just in case, to protect him from bullets.
- when Hei Xiazi was told that the cops found a dead body and he feared that it was Xiao Hua, remembering his words, "Are you not afraid that we will all die?"
- when Hei Xiazi immediately packed his things and ran to Xiao Hua's rescue.
- when Hei Xiazi realized that Xiao Hua was poisoned - well, the rest of the expedition too but them folks could just keel over and die for all he cared - and kept on checking on Xiao Hua for the rest of the movie every time Xiao Hua was sick or dizzy - Hei Xiazi's Look(TM) when he saw the insect sores on Xiao Hua's arm!
- when Hei Xiazi decided to open the sarcophagus, not really caring what was inside, just so Wannabe Cthulhu would stop killing Xiao Hua.
- when Wannabe Cthulhu smacked Xiao Hua off the platform and Hei Xiazi screamed with rage!
- when it looked like they might die after all and Hei Xiazi simply lay down next to Xiao Hua, fully intending to just expire together with him right then and there.
- when they escaped through the river and at some point, Hei Xiazi let his young fellow of a friend go, despite the boy being knocked out, to drag Xiao Hua up.
- when Hei Xiazi's young friend told him, "Why don't you go with [Xiao Hua]? He obviously cares about you a lot."
- when they then ran off together, doing unseemly things in Russia.

This movie just pushed all the right buttons when it came to whump. There wasn't just a lot of hurt, there was so much care on both sides. It's the most lasting impression of mine after watching this movie: they CARED for each other. They cared so much. You could truly feel the depth of affection they had for each other. Smitten, I was smitten!

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What a great and actually gay drama. As in, Tao Mo & Gu She are really in love and they get their happy ending - and that’s why the Chinese censorship cut the drama from 28 eps to 12, which is why the beginning is rather slow and the last ep very rushed. Because the censors might’ve cut the show but the director and everyone involved still scrambled and did their best to give the viewers the book ending, the fairy tale ending for Tao Mo and Gu She. And the very last scene is one of the most touching, softest and sweetest thing I’ve seen in a Cdrama yet, hands down!

So yes, I can highly recommend the drama. There are scenes that drag a little - see above - but Tao Mo & Gu She and their love - their scenes in general, really, they range from touching to truly hilarious - are worth it. The actors’ chemistry is fantastic and they were in 3 dramas together already, twice playing lovers, so… Thumbs up from me, for sure!

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It’s a Jackie Chan movie. And it’s a silly thing, sillier than usual, even for Jackie Chan. Seriously, there are CGI hyenas in it, I kid you not. But there’s also Yang Yang, so there is that, true.

And, gosh, action stuff really suits Yang Yang. Like really. He looked and moved like a real soldier. But even though his character was a bodyguard, he sure was the damsel in distress in this movie. First, the heroine shot him with a tranquilizer by mistake in the middle of a fight so when he got her away from the bad guys, she had to take care of him and get him to safety because, well, he fell asleep. And then, when they were attacked again, he got hit over the head protecting her and they were both captured. And then, he got put into a bomb vest, just for the kidnappers’ kicks. So... yeah. I guess the filmmakers realized that Yang Yang suffered nicely. Or something.

Overall, the movie is nothing to write home about. There’s just way too much CGI. Even most of the car chases are CGI. And because of that, the most adrenaline fueled scene is the one where Vanguard comes to save Yang Yang’s character and the girl because that’s mostly genuine, old-fashioned action. Too bad, it could’ve been a good one. Oh well...

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Short (altogether not even an hour long) and cheaply made for an online platform like TikTok so don't expect a masterpiece. It's not. Because of its shortness and cheapness there isn't much space for character development or any kind of a deep story. But!

But it still pushed all my buttons because I was smitten with the relationship between the princess and her bodyguard. The power dynamic there was so very much up my alley that it made me do a shimmy in my seat!

She's definitely the one in control, both outside the bedroom AND inside it. Yes, they actually do have sex in this drama, a sight pretty much unseen in a Cdrama, I know. And not only that - she's the one in power and he definitely enjoys letting her do whatever she wants. And what a pretty toy he makes. And he suffers so very nicely in the vein of many Cdrama male leads, heh.

So, the story is nothing to write home about but their relationship? Wowza!

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The best Wu Xie piece yet. Hands down. The casting, the chemistry among the main four actors, the writing, the cinematography, the haunting music, the sets… all of it was perfect! There was action, humor, friendship so wonderful it stole my heart… plethora of whump - but also affection among Wu Xie, Zhang Qiling and Wang Pangzi. Ah-mazing!

Even before this drama, I was a fan of Neo Hou but this cemented my opinion on him, that he isn’t just a pretty face but a great actor, too. He hit Wu Xie’s kind nature but also slight arrogance perfectly. I also came off this series a big fan of Cheng Yi which I didn’t expect at all. His aloof Zhang Qiling who always had the softest of looks for Wu Xie alone. And Zhang Boyu as Pangzi who finally threw all pretense of being in this for the money in the wind and just decided to stick around and be Wu Xie’s bodyguard because someone had to watch out of Mr. Naive…

Also, there was the maybe-maybe-not budding romance between Wu Xie and A Ning and unlike in the previous season, in this it pushed all my buttons. Because A Ning was so much harder than Wu Xie and also older yet she couldn’t help but grow so fond of him, despite herself. Wonderful.

Also #2, the whole current generation of the Nine Families, not just Wu Xie but also Xiao Hua, Xiu Xiu and the others! I loved that regardless of their parents’ or grandparents’ issues with each other, this generation stuck together and walked through fire together and they were all so very fond of each other.

And as much I’m not a fan of long flashback scenes, the one about Lt. Zhang in this drama was just wonderful. And heartbreaking. And spooky.

This series simply made me happy. I always looked forward to each and every new episode and the Iron Triangle’s mad adventures, underwater and in the hot jungle and in the snow covered mountains… Highly recommended, all thumbs up!

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Holy smokes, Gen Y is good! Because they have several seasons planned for this drama, they have the time to actually develop all the relationships. And they do it so well!

Mark & Kit are pretty much in the can, the resident Happy Couple(TM)! So I wonder what the drama has in store for them in S2, what will be the wrench that proverbial monkey will throw in. Because they seem as ridiculously happy and content as two peas in a pod at the moment. Suspicious, if you ask me!

Then the whole Pha/Wayu/Thanu/Phai quadrangle! Gosh, it’s so well developed. Pha who seemed as the perfect guy at first now seems almost threatening, that creepy music that started playing whenever Wayu received one of his gifts in the finale was, well, creepy! And Thanu is just so, so sweet! And Phai, too! But it’s this quadrangle that’s at the centre of the supernatural plot of memories sharing and fated soulmates. And it’s so intriguing! I have never, ever, ever seen this plot done before, fate giving someone two soulmates and telling them to deal with it.

(It’s interesting, though, that with Wayu, Thanu shared memories of the past. With Phai memories of the future. Similar but not the same.)

Then there’s Sandee who somehow, in some way fits into this quadrangle. Because Pon Thanapon and Bank Thanathip who play Phai and Sandee, respectively, played a couple in two dramas before already and even the ad at the end of the finale featured them together so... I would say Phai and Sandee are headed in the way of becoming a couple in the future, too? Probably? Maybe? The fact that Sandee kept asking Phai if Phai believed in destiny would suggests so. But... is Sandee actually a good guy or not? Because, boy, did he do some really shady stuff in this drama. While looking incredibly, amazingly, stunningly hot! (Sue me :P)

And Thong and Pok. Holy smokes! The naughty, naughty scene with them was one of the hottest things I’ve ever seen, hands down. The way Thong got off on Pok being so rough with him. Goodness gracious, he loved it. You know, for two newcomers, these actors were just stunning there. At first, their interaction in the drama seemed stilted but as we saw more of them, their chemistry got so much better and when that sex scene happened? Christ on a cracker! I can’t wait to see where S2 will take them.

Also Jack and Koh, the mystery of Padbok and Thanu etc. and so on, of course!

This drama is so, so good! The first half focused mainly on Mark and Kit and only laid very rough foundations for the “kids” that joined the university later on. But when they did, I actually knew them already so I was honestly interested in every single one of those pairings! That was such a smart writing. I loved it.

So yeah, this drama has humor but also real intrigue and you never know what direction it will take next. Amazing. It makes me want to go back to the very beginning and watch it all anew now that I know more or less what’s going on and learn more about the characters that I paid little attention to before. From me? Both thumbs up!

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I love this drama. I mean it. I love this drama. It’s the best Cdrama I’ve seen so far. I love it “as is”, not despite this or that, not as a guilty pleasure, no “I love it but…!” I love it, pure and simple.

I love the cinematography, I love the music, I love the locations. I love it all - but mainly the characters. Zhuang Rui, Feifei, Fuyun, Peng Fei, Binbing… and even the bad guys who are dangerous and sometimes downright creepy. But mainly, I adore Zhang Yixing’s Zhuang Rui. He’s incredibly smart and hardworking, kind and selfless, brave and full of integrity. And I love how he just… collects people and things along the way, but mostly people, broadening the circle of his friends and found family by trusting them fully - until he can’t, that is. And even then he still gives them a second chance to explain… And I just love him for it.

Also, if you love whump, then this drama is chock-full of it. Once the side-effects of Zhuang Rui’s golden eyes set in, it’s a real ride and Zhuang Rui becomes the Damsel in Distress™ of this series.

So, from my POV, I can wholeheartedly recommend this series. I adore it!

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If I had to compare it to regular dramas, I would, of course, find it very lacking. But for a shorty short web series? Not bad, not bad at all.

Jing Yuan was so devilishly mischievous and so in love with Fusheng. Fusheng was all, "Oh, pretty men, gimme!" And Qing Chen was... well, a Victorian virgin ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

This was pretty much a drama about a devil and an angel in love with a goddess but the devil actually had balls and the angel was a wishy-washy dude who wanted the cake and eat it, too.

It honestly felt like a fanfic where the writer couldn't be bothered with things like world building and broader storytelling and simply picked the "good" scenes they actually wanted to write about and bounced from one to another. Too bad. It could have been a great real drama.

PS: Li Fei suffers very nicely - and a lot in this drama. Also, his eyes sparkle so wonderfully when Jing Yuan goes around, spreading mayhem.

PSS: My favorite line? When Fusheng pummeled the girl who bullied her, actually pummeled her with her fists. Jing Yuan's reaction! "Tsk, so bloody... I like it!"

For what it's worth - and though it wasn't as good as The Killer Is Also Romantic, the best short web series I've seen so far - it was a actually good one.

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This drama… well, it was. That’s it. It just was. It’s not that I disliked it (even though the reason for why Gao Shi De didn’t contact Shu Yi for 5 whole years seemed like a conflict for conflict’s sake, honestly) and there were some very cute moments (mainly carried by the chemistry between the leads) but overall? Overall there was nothing that really stuck with me. I’m glad that I watched it but I’m also glad that I finished watching it and I can now move on to something else. It’s really hard to explain. After the first ep, I decided to wait till it was all out and watch it in one go in the hope that then it would grip me. Alas.

To sum it up? Several great scenes worth reblogging in gif form, as a whole nothing really special, though. But since it’s just 6 eps, each 30 or so min. long, give it a try and see for yourself? That would be my advice. Maybe you will love it.

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This is an amazing movie starring Iwata Takanori and Mackenyu. For me, it's as beautiful in its tragedy as Rurouni Kenshin: The Beginning. I'm not going to talk about the plot because the slow unraveling of Makoto's "master plan" is the whole point of the movie, it's really well paced and it's better to go in unspoiled. What I am going to talk about is my heart, in itty bitty pieces...

This movie is also known under the title The End of the Tiny World and said tiny world is that of Iwata Takanori's Kida. Like he said to the girl he loved, Yocchi, "My world is really tiny. It's just me and you and Makoto." (Paraphrasing!) And the movie is about how his tiny world ended and he was left with nothing. It's heartbreaking.

And Iwata Takanori is mesmerizing to watch here. Seeing his Kida turn from a small town mechanic into a self-assured negotiator for the mob, to someone who pulls a gun and fires it without blinking, that's a thing to behold.

A truly unforgettable movie. Small, almost intimate yet unforgettable.

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This drama will stay with me for a very long time. It's, hands down, one of the best Thai dramas I've ever seen. Actually... no, it's one of the best dramas I've seen, period. All the characters were so rich, so 3D and every single one of them - everyone but Newwiee's Khan - had his or her hand in what happened to Papang, even she herself because even she was not blameless.

It was so interesting, the way the layers were slowly peeled off, revealing to Khan - the outsider in this story - what happened to his sister, who her friends truly were, what they had done, what she had done, how much she hadn't been telling him because she didn't want him to worry, her sweet big brother. So much ugliness and toxicity...

"Don't let your comments kill another person."

Yeah.

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I watched this little drama - 6 eps 20 or so mins each - mainly and mostly for Yamada Yuki as Murayama. Murayama is truly one of his best roles so far, hands down. Why? Because Murayama is so very multifaceted: dumb yet wise, ruthless yet caring and loyal to a fault. And then there's his obsession with - and devotion to - Cobra-chan!

This drama is set during the 2nd and 3rd High & Low movies. And before High & Low: The Worst. It goes deeper into what had been happening in Ouya High at the time and it introduces many of the side-characters from The Worst. It's also interspersed with various flashbacks to the movies, all in the vein of "meanwhile in SWORD..." so that you can get a better idea of what's happening when.

Like I said, my favorite part was Murayama. His journey towards outgrowing them all. It was beautifully portrayed not just in scenes with Murayama himself but also through Todoroki who has always craved defeating Murayama - while Murayama never really cared. But here, you could see Todoroki realizing that Murayama was getting farther and farther ahead of him.

One of my favorite moments happened in ep 6, when all the other gang leaders talked in hushed, awed voices about SWORD going against Kuryu - together with Murayama and the part-timers. The moment they realized that this was completely out of their league.

Another great moment was when Murayama actually realized the same thing, that the full-timers were there, in Ouya High, to actually learn something and to graduate and that they could not do that if they meddled in SWORD's affairs. And thus he permanently divided the school into full-timers and part-timers who would, from that moment on, never cross lines. And he banned the full-timers from ever sticking their noses into SWORD's business again.

Not only did that prove that Murayama matured into a real leader, it also meant a clean cut for the future movies and dramas. From here on, even though those stories would be happening in the same universe as High & Low, they would follow their own line of storytelling.

Overall, a good series that became great whenever Yamada Yuki entered the screen. Goodness gracious, he's awesome!

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