[2023] — completed

completed on february 16th

I liked it, but I found the way most of the characters interacted in this very weird. The supporting characters only ever had one topic of conversation and it was the main leads. I could come to term with them not being given much depth, but don't give them screentime just to give insight on the main leads' relationship/personalities. It just felt so unnatural. Especially when the drama seemed to try to feel grounded and "real".  I also oddly felt like I didn't know much about the show's main leads by the end of its run. Kind of like they didn't grow much beyond my first impression of them. It's a shame because I feel like the show would have benefitted from leaning more into its slice-of-life side than its melo one.

completed on april 30th

This was a lot of fun! The cases weren't particularly memorable but the characters and their interactions had a lot of heart. The team truly felt like one and I LOVED their banter.

completed on may 2nd

The set up of this show is ridiculous and everything that happened in it feels like a fever dream. It is in no way whatsoever grounded in reality and lacks substance in every way possible. Both leads are really pretty and have great chemistry, But every interactions and "moments" they share feel very artificial and contrived. That being said, the show is at least upfront about what it is from the very beginning and doesn't seem to take itself seriously which limits the second-hand embarassment while watching it. And it is very short, with 7 episodes all clocking at around 25mns. 

completed on may 5th

This was SO GOOD! I had a wonderful time watching it and was very sad to have to let its characters go. It felt very different from the usual 'time leap formula' and it was also very funny.  I loved that it focused on seemingly mundane moments/conversations and how relatable those felt. The friendship shared by the girls was incredibly touching and heartwarming. And I love how much of a focus it became as the episodes went on.

completed on may 20th

I had a really good time watching this show. It was very funny, but also very emotional when it needed to be. Tseng Jing Hua delivered a wonderful performance as Yiyong. And the way the drama dealt with his grief and guilt felt very thoughtful and emotionally spot-on. The episodic cases were also pretty interesting. But the show truly shined for me when it cames to its characters' interactions and their relationships.

completed on june 6th

This was such a nice watch.  It's different from what you'd usually expect from a kdrama, but in a very good way.  Seeing Ha Kyung on her trips felt very soothing. And her character who initially seemed very bland also grew on me with every passing episode.

completed on august 8th

This started out promisingly, and I was really excited about it following the premiere week. But the way both the truck "accident" and Ji Eum's first life were dealt with felt incredibly uninspired. Sadly, even Shin Hye Sun's great performance couldn't make up for the lazy writing.

completed on august 13th

completed on august 18th

I started watching this show because I thought its premise had a lot of potential. And while An Ancient Love Song delivered a satisfying watching experience, I also feel like it didn't live up to its full potential. When it comes to the central romance, I did eventually come to care about it. But I was initially a bit bewildered by it. I could get why Lu Yuan fell in love with Shen Buyan; the drama gave us four episodes of her getting to know him without interruption. But I never fully understood how Shen Bu Yan fell in love with her. Their first meeting (from his POV) was too short-lived, and I wish they had allocated a bit more screen time to it. So that him developping feelings for her felt less shoe-horned. A better actor would also have made it more convincing. The rest of the cast wasn't made up of acting prodigies. But the male lead was particularly distracting in the first few episodes. As for the plot itself, the length of the show is both its best and its worst ally. The main antagonist's arc felt notably rushed and there are also plenty of plot conveniences I forgive solely because the show was short. Overall, though, despite my complaints, I still enjoyed my watch.

completed in august

I had a very good time watching this, even as someone usually averse to medical dramas. The characters really grew on me; be it the core five or the supporting cast. They all had wonderful chemistry. And I appreciate the obvious time and effort that was put into research to make this show feel as grounded as possible. 

will rate and comment about both parts together! 

completed on september 24th

As I'm not usually into superhero shows/movies, it was surprising to find myself having such a good time watching Moving. I loved how grounded it felt because of its approach to its characters' superpowers. Sure, characters flew, healed, and threw super punches. But whatever they felt was raw, and their motivations were very humane.

If I had to be completely honest, I would say the first two-thirds of the show were my favorites. While I understand and respect the show's intent on giving EVERY character a full-fledged backstory through flashbacks, it got a bit tedious towards the end. Some of the characters also, in my opinion, didn't need such lengthy focus on them. A few scenes here and there would have been enough to clue us in and make us care. (Bungaeman and the teacher come to mind). 

On another note, I find it weird how the show nailed SO many of its emotional scenes for it to fumble when it came to the reunion scene of Doo Shik, Mi Hyun, and Bong Seok. It felt so lackluster for it to happen in a 10-second zoom-out. 

I'm also bummed that we didn't get to see Ganghoon befriending Heesoo and Bongseok when we got so many scenes of him obviously wanting to get close to them.

But a lot of my "complaints" stem from the fact that the show tried to do and be so much. And while it didn't manage to be perfect in every aspect, it still was very good in most of them. And that's the reason why it's such a solid and entertaining drama.

completed on october 26th

It was a good watch which started stronger than it ended: a surprinsing mix of comedy, melodrama and investigation. Ro Hee was a delight, and seeing her slowly learning how to be treated as a kid was heartwarming. Yu Na, the actress who played her, delivered a great performance. And I enjoyed the father-daughter chemistry she shared with Yoon Kye Sang. I was less impressed by the latter, especially in the more emotional scenes in the last quarter of the show. Kim Shin Rok, though, was amazing and really stood out here. On another note, I thought the writing was consistent until episode 9 or so. After that point, characters  made some pretty dumb choices, and my suspension of disbelief started to waver. This was especially notable because I, for once, thought, that the detecives made pretty sensible deductions and moves up until that point. I still thought the ending (minus the after-credit scene) was satisfying and wrapped things up nicely.