To My Star (2021)

Beautiful and refreshing!

I've watched a lot of BL dramas especially these past few months filled with many new and absolutely well acted Korean BLs. I was supprised that this didn't pop up in my recommandation but well my Viki app put it on the front :)

Well let's jump onto the review, shall we!

Story: This was a great change from the school stuff (because there are a lot of them)! Right from the start I was hooked! I admit before watching a movie/drama, I read reviews on Viki or other apps so that I can make my own opinion after watching. So when I started watching I had a lot of expectation and I WASN'T DISAPPOINTED! The story is well built from the beginning and every episode follows up to the other without boring scenes!

Acting: Just Wow! It was my first time watching all these actors and from the main cast to the supporting one, they did an amazing Job! I really liked the actor of the Kang Seo Joon character coz, well, he's very handsome to begin with. He portrayed his character so well that I was surprised every time (like how scary was he when he got serious or angry!). And the cold yet cute Chef (Han Ji Woo)! Their chemistry was really good which made the story easy to watch and enjoyable.

Music: some may agree with me but the recent Korean BL dramas have good music, with nice voices and message. So naturally, I downloaded their songs as well :)

Re-watch : I rarely re-watch dramas even when I like them because they are often long and have many episodes but this one doesn't, so I'll definitely re-watch it some time!

So to finish, It'll be a 10/10 for me! And I recommend it to everyone who like this genre:)

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it was exciting and so beautifal

this is so special drama
i like the actors and how they look together , their game was so beautifal and make my heart beat too loud
Chemistry between them is wow...
and the genre in Korea is getting better
And it's an exciting drama even in relation to the Thai BL
Even though they are full of scenes here it was enough what it was because there was a lot of emotion beyond (although hoping for season 2 with more ....)
And they too were realistic about life and the problems they encountered
in brief
I really enjoyed running to see who has not seen yet
And really I and everyone I know are looking forward to season
( or more dramas that they both plaing together)!!!!!!!!
thank you about this an exciting experience

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Bit Fat 10

Indeed, I was generous..again. I am giving it a big fat 10, and yes one of the reasons is that beautiful fairly steamy ending. (for a k-bl that was steamy..lol) I did give it a nice 10 for the story, too. It was a more mature. It was pretty well put together. It had a nice flow.
But..but..BUT.. my 10 definitely goes to this beautiful line, which I hope it won't be considered a spoiler: "If it's okay with you, I don't mind people finding out." Now that...that got me bad. I am not ashamed to admit that it made me bawl my eyes out. I think I appreciated that the most. Considering the circumstances in the story and in the reality of the gay community in South Korea, that line can definitely be considered equal to "i love you to death". (I hope I'm wrong and things are better there, and I guess these latest shorts are an indication of that)
Also, I think future K-BL's are screwed after this one, because when it comes to skinship these guys raised the bar pretty high. Anyone who says that doesn't matter is lying. ;))
So, though I still have special love for Mr. Heart, this one really deserves a 10 (too). :))

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Slow, steady, and comforting

[light spoilers in the "story" section below] So far, this drama (web drama, technically) has been a delight to watch. The cinematography is absolutely beautiful; each and every shot is aesthetic and has an air of comfort. The crew definitely used every penny of their budget and put it to good use. It's both realistic and soothing at the same time, with the right amount of comedy and budding friendship .

STORY:
Reaction after the first 3 episodes: I'm quite shocked that we're already through with more than ⅓ of the drama, but the pacing is excellent (and I hope that will continue). There wasn't any instant chemistry between the leads when they met, and that's what makes it realistic. Jiwoo really doesn't like Seojun. The two somehow end up living together and try to find a semblance of balance between their contrasting personalities. You can see Jiwoo slowly warming up to the bright but troubled Seojun, and their relationship is blossoming quite delicately. I can tell the plot isn't going to be mind-blowing or anything, but that's only because it's not supposed to distract from the more introspective elements of the series, which is each lead dealing with their own demons and growing closer together as they become more mature people. The whole enemies-to-lovers trope has somehow been executed really well so far, although they technically haven't fallen in love. It's hard to make a drama with a cliché refreshing and charming, but it worked! There's a nice balance of comedy and seriousness.
[light spoilers] Reaction after 6 episodes: Wow! I mean they still kept the pacing going well, but there was a lot of progression at the same time. I'm really curious if Hyungki's getting threatened, if Inwoo and Seojun were possibly in a relationship before, Yoonseul's true intentions, etc etc...Bottom line is, I'm loving how they've got me curious about the plot and making inferences, but I'm slightly worried about how they'll fit it all in just 3 more episodes, what with Seojun and Jiwoo probably getting together but then Jiwoo's homophobia jumping out and ruining things. I wonder how it'll go! Hopefully they don't leave things hanging like Color Rush. As most of you realized, that drama had a nice premise, but the execution was yikes. Glad to see To My Star doesn't have the same problem.

ACTING/CAST:
It's pretty clear that the leads have had prior acting experience. Kangmin is doing well to portray Jiwoo's reserved yet bold personality and Woohyun's charming smile is a perfect fit for Seojun. They both use well-timed micro-expressions to reveal little details about their characters, which makes it all the more exciting to watch given that we're all kinda trying to predict the plot. As all the WYES fans know, Jaeyeong, the actor for Pilhyun, is an amazing actor, and his interactions with Jinkwon (member of Kpop group NewKidd), who plays Homin, are hilarious. They all have great chemistry on- and off-set and it's very obvious given how well they all fit together.

MUSIC:
The OST is really cute and I absolutely adore the song they used in trailer 3 (I can't remember if I've heard it in the drama yet), which is "Left Hand" by NewKidd02. Give it a listen!! Support Jinkwon <3

REWATCH VALUE:
This drama is so soft yet kind of...rocky? Like in a mature way, so I feel at peace while I'm watching it but it's also not just tooth-rotting fluff/fanservice. The characters are real and dynamic and their problems are treated with care, so the whole drama feels realistic to me. TL;DR I feel like I could rewatch this at anytime, when I'm happy or sad, because it's really grounding.

OVERALL:
It's really sweet and comforting. I'm definitely ready for the angst that's coming later, especially because I'm intrigued to know how the internalized homophobia is going to affect their individual characters and relationships, but no matter how rocky the waters will get, I just know the atmosphere and music will lull us all into a state of peace. It's all going to work out in the end. I definitely recommend this drama.

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Short but won't leave you unsatisfied

I won't keep this long. I just wanted to express how this miniseries made me feel. Technicalities-wise (Acting, Music, Cinematography), To My Star nailed everything. The OST was so fitting, and I cannot stress enough how beautifully captured each scenes were. The chemistry between all the actors is REALLY good, I have to commend the director for casting the right actors to give life on these characters. Lastly, the phasing was just right. For a miniseries (9 episodes with more or less than 15 minutes running time), To My Star was able to tell a tell a story cohesively without rushing anything at the expense of the plot.

Now, with all that praise, you might be wondering why I gave a 9.5 rating instead of a perfect 10. Its because of a few plot holes which I believe weren't addressed properly. One for example is about Ji Woo's family life. All we know is that he became independent at a very young age, he wasn't able to study at a culinary school and his parents asked Pil Hyun's family a favor to look after him. Also on that scene where Seo Joon admitted his feelings for Ji Woo but Ji Woo doubted it, saying that Seo Joon's attraction was only out of pity. It wasn't clear if he was neglected or abandoned by his family which would have been a substantial backstory and reason why Ji Woo lacks social skills and its hard for him to trust people easily.

Another is the part where the paparazzi personally apologized to Seo Joon, even going as far as visiting him at home to properly apologize. I think that part was extremely unrealistic lmao

Overall, To My Star proved that you don't need catchphrases or heavy lines to make an impact with a story. It was short, light, genuine, but it would leave you fulfilled and contented unlike its predecessors who made it obvious that time constraint made it hard for them to deliver a cohesive story.

(This is my first time writing a review so please take it easy on me!)

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Sweet and heartwarming

I really enjoyed this. It gave me that little burst of happiness in my stomach so often. While there were a few things that could have been better, the acting and general premise was great! Hope to see more from these two actors.

For such a short series the character growth happens fast (a bit unrealistic) but the growth is a natural progression of the character arc and would have been perfect for a longer format series. New characters unexpectedly popped up at the end, but again, it feels like a longer story pushed into the limited time available.

It kept surprising me with some very poignant lines that I did not expect - "people who build up walls". The restaurant owner also was not a stereotypical bad guy and the company CEO was a great character. And the moments of heart fluttering sweetness - when he keeps asking him when he's coming home and he waits at the door for him to come back.

With some Korean BL shows the gay part is ignored, like Wish You. It's just about two people falling in love. In this series it is a bigger aspect since that photo is an important part of the plot.

One thing that was unexpected was the kiss. The very first kiss looked very awkward and I thought it would be one of those types of shows. But the very last kiss was definitely much better. It's like they were both a bit unsure about how this should go and as their relationship grew, so did their physical closeness.

I loved it and will definitely give it a rewatch.

Also, when will we get a full length Korean BL series T__T

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Truly Wonderful Korean BL

This is the first review I'm writing on this website. I have to say that most of the time I've been severely disappointed by the Korean BL industry. Often times the story just is either completely rushed and doesn't make sense or there's just no real umph to it.

To My Star is wonderful. The two main actors have great chemistry and the storyline is truly interesting. The main conflict in this story isn't about being gay or even jealousy or other common tropes you see in this genre. No. The main conflict is that you have a young gentleman who has grown up poor and works as a chef who doesn't like handouts and wants to make it on his own but beneath everything is truly lonely. Then on the other side, you have a rich movie actor who has to go into hiding because the public assumes the worst of him after footage is displayed of him leaving a club with a friend who is beaten and bloody.

The story moves wonderfully and naturally. I also have a love for famous/non-famous. Seojun is such a puppy like character but also is strong when it matters. He goes after what he wants but also tries to please those around him.

I look forward to more works out of this studio. I have already watched this several times. The only drawback to this drama is that there are a few storylines I would have liked to know more about. Mainly both of the characters backgrounds but neither of these things are necessary for the storyline--they are just things I wonder about.

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BL with a real feel to it

Although shorter than I'd like, it conveyed the actors did a great job conveying the story & their characters well. I was very happy to see Kim Kang Min in another series not long after I completed "Tale of the Nine Tailed" and that he was one of the main leads! He and his co star Son Woo Hyun had great chemistry on the screen and made the closeness of the characters believable. Fantastic smile too! I look forward to seeing all of these actors in the future.

Thank you.

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Feel Like I'm Missing Something

I'm not sure if there were a few moments I didn't understand right, but I personally felt that the plot was confusing at times. I also felt that the couple didn't actually like each other until halfway through episode 8 or so. Looking back on it I can see that the chef was holding himself back a lot (not sure why exactly, as the plot doesn't delve too deep into what I can assume is abandonment issues), so with that in hindsight I understand the chemistry a little bit more. But still, I personally feel that this show is a bit overhyped. The entire cast were very likeable, so that's a saving grace here!

I would only recommend this drama if you're just looking for something short to watch that doesn't take too much brain power to focus on. Or if you like handsome men and don't care too much about being a little underwhelmed.

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A charming, heartwarming drama with all the right elements

Within the last year, Korea has been heading into the foray of BL, especially with the hugely popular Where Your Eyes Linger being at the forefront. For the most part, the stories that Korea has brought out have been pretty good, with maybe one or two subpar releases. Where Your Eyes Linger remained for me the best that had been of this category-- until now.

To My Star is a pretty simple story. An actor moves into a share house after he gets caught up in a scandal and meets the main tenant there, a chef. There's tension at first but it soon turns into feelings for one another. I don't mind simple storylines. In fact, I love them. It's about execution and To My Star does it all the right ways.

Son Woo Hyun and Kim Kang Min have a soft yet incredible chemistry. The progression of their relationship is done so well and the actors sink into their roles perfectly. Kang Seo Joon is the bubbly and charming actor while Han Ji Woo is a complete tsundere. It's a trope that the writer knows how to work with and checks off the best parts of that trope without delving into the possible problematic parts of it. I absolutely loved the slow-burn of their relationship and how they came to admitting their feelings for each other.

The characters of Kim Pil Hyun and Baek Ho Min add some great humor to the show, especially Kim Pil Hyun (who I hope is the same character from Where Your Eyes Linger because we love interconnectivity!). Another positive note for Korean BLs is the continued positive representation of the women in the stories. BLs, ESPECIALLY Thai BLs, love to make women seem vile and vindictive in order to progress the story of the main male characters in the show. Thankfully, this hasn't been the case for the Korean ones yet. Yoon Seul is a pretty cool character for the most part. She's dedicated to her job and she's incredibly smart and observant. She's also a good friend to Ji Woo and actually wants to help Seo Joon's image. On the other character, Kyung Hi, I've been wanting a second kind of lead for a love triangle in a Korean BL since they've started. It didn't exactly happen the way I was hoping but hey, it's okay.

The one gripe I have is that I wanted to be longer. I'm sure I'm not alone in that thought. Maybe not necessarily longer episodes but just more of them. The writer and director did amazing within a limited nine-episode frame, though. As Korea is just starting with BL, we'll hopefully get to the point of longer shows.

All in all, if you want a light, tenderhearted show about two people falling for each other, with great chemistry, this is the one. Honestly, it's become the favorite of the ones that Korea has put out so far and it might make me a little biased going forward with future shows. I really hope that Son Woo Hyun and Kim Kang Min get cast in other projects too because they're really good actors (as well as the rest). Korea, take a hint.

Just know that they if they were to announce a sequel to this, I'll sure as hell be watching it.

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