the best wholesome drama

It has been over a month since this drama ended and I cannot stop thinking about it, thats how good this drama is. Highly recommend!
Every character is so well developed which makes a lot of sense considering that Kieta Hatsukoi is adapted from a manga series. I so badly wish we could get a season 2 but that is probably really unlikely but a girl can dream.
This is my first time not only watching a Jdrama but one that is also BL and it exceeded any expectation I had. Kieta Hatsukoi is a really lighthearted, fun, comedic and wholesome drama about miscommunication, love and friendship.
When researching BL dramas Vs. GL dramas, I wish really surprised at how little GL dramas there are compared to BL. Now it just makes me wish for GL dramas like Kieta Hatsukoi,

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S O L J I W A N

This was the most disappointing drama of 2021 in my opinion. The first couple of episodes were great and had a lot of potential for the upcoming episodes after but oh my did it flop after. The main disappointment of the entire drama was the main couple and Bitna's relationship with Gyu Hyun. The only reason I gave it the rating I did was for ❤️Soljiwan❤️. They were EVERYTHING to me!! Their storyline was so well-written and ugh it was just so good. The CONFESSION SCENE OMG. Nah because I replayed that scene a ridiculous amount of times. Before I submit the review, I should acknowledge potato boy who was unfortunately hit with the terrible disease of 'second male lead syndrome. rip potato boy :(

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Bad Buddy, a Romcom BL drama close to perfection

This show is hands down one of the best BL dramas out there. It was so well down in every aspect possible (of course it still has flaws because nothing can absolutely be perfect) and I found myself becoming so invested in Pat and Pran that when it ended I felt so hollow.

For context, I watched this show after watching the 2gether series (I went into a detailed rant about that drama in my 2gether: the series review) and although all the issues I had with the series was resolved in Still 2gether, I found myself hesistant to start another BL drama from GMMTV. However, I saw many people praising Bad Buddy in their reviews and thought that I should at least give the first episode a watch......and boy was I glad that I did.
Bad Buddy did everything that the 2gether series failed to do and more. The actors, Ohm and Nanon, have insane chemistry and were so perfectly cast as Pat and Pran. The two characters felt like a real genuine couple and in more of the emotional scenes, for example the rooftop kiss scene in episode 5 (or even in the whole of episode 11), you find yourself getting so lost in whats happening that you forget you're even watching a show in the first place. That is how strong the chemistry, writing, directing and acting is for Bad Buddy. Another thing I want to note is how the show doesn't seem to be catering to a straight audience/to the heteronormative agenda at all. It felt so genuine with how they portrayed a healthy gay relationship (even having the side couple be sapphic which made this show all the more special). Where the 2gether: the series felt like it was mocking the audience in some scenes, instead of focusing on showing a genuine romcom, Bad Buddy is a refreshing romcom with stellar performances from the main actors, fortunately avoiding all the negative tropes found in other BL dramas.

Despite how much I have praised this show, Bad Buddy is not exempt from criticism. The biggest flaw with the show is the motive/reasoning behind the feud. Considering this show is a spin on Romeo and Juliet (enemies to lovers), one of the more important things aside from the main relationship is the feud. However, Bad Buddy's reasoning is very juvenile, from both the parents side and the friend groups side. It is definitely something that can put you off from watching/ enjoying the show if thats an aspect in the enemies-to-lovers trope that you personally enjoy a lot. Regardless, I found myself really liking the show and its all because of Ohm and Nanon's portrayal of Pat and Pran. You can tell when watching that the team behind the show focused a lot on the main relationship (which is great!) but in doing so the side characters were often neglected at times/weren't fully realised as characters which made them feel like caricatures at times. I think the only side characters where it didn't feel like that were with Ink and Pa (reasoning: they got enough spotlight to develop (while still minor) into a relationship).

Hands down one of my favourite things about this show is how the actors Ohm and Nanon seem to genuinely love doing their scenes and being on this show. From little candid moments where you can see they were genuinely laughing or just how they added their little 'isms into small moments which added so much to the overall scene. I really really want a second season! I have never felt invested into a show like I have for Bad Buddy in quite some time and with how it the show ended there is room to explore the characters further. I wouldn't even be mad if they gave us 5 episodes for s2 like Still 2gether got, I just really want to see more from the characters specifically Pat, Pran, Ink and Pa.

Before I submit my review, there's one more thing I want to praise this show for and its the OST. The OST 'Just Friends?' alone was so good and I even added it to my playlist because its genuinely good. I really liked how Bad Buddy incorporated the OST into the show and you may even catch yourself singing/humming along. The show was able to reuse their music in multiple episodes without it getting old which is a great achievement if I'm being honest.

I highly recommend this show to everyone who ends up reading this review!
My Favourite Episodes: Ep 5 and 11
Rewatch Value: 10/10

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Bittersweet ending

If you've watched 2gether: The Series and Still 2gether, then just skip to the last couple minutes of the movie since the rest of it is just a clip compilation recap of everything that happened in S1 and 2.
In the last few minutes of the movie where we see them at their graduation, it hit me how far these characters have come especially Tine and Sarawat from who they were in the beginning of 2gether: The Series. Watching them through the montage of them after graduation was so cute and for a split second I thought the baby was theres but its not. Still, I've really grown to like Sarawat and Tine and will miss them. It was so fun watching the shows and I will definitely be rewatching s2 (I've reserved my opinions on S1 in my review). Despite a lot of the flaws the shows have, I've grown attached to the couple and will enjoy rewatching my fave clips. 2gether trilogy may not be the best BL drama out there but I like to think that Tine and Sarawat are one of the best couple

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The best use of "I fall for you but you fall harder" trope

I just want to thank every single person who recommended this drama!

For context: Ever since I completed Kieta Hatsukoi, I could not stop thinking about the show (I'm not even exaggerating, like its all I could think about). So I thought to myself "why don't I just watch Cherry Magic since a lot of people recommended it, saying its has a similar vibe to Kieta Hatsukoi" and that is how I found this drama, 30-sai made Dotei Da to Mahotsukai ni Nareru rashii or better known as Cherry Magic.

At first I was really hesitant to watch this drama considering the premise was "a man gains the ability to hear people's thoughts via touch because he's a 30 year old virgin". Despite my hesitation I still gave it a watch after seeing all the positive reviews...and I am so glad I did!

I really really enjoyed this drama! I can't even put it into words how much I loved watching Cherry Magic. Before I go on praising the show however, I just want to quickly say the one (and only) downside I had and it has to do with Tsuge and Minato's relationship. I like both characters (actually tsuge not so much, that grown man does the cringiest stuff around Minato) but I really struggled to get past how Tsuge is 30 years old and he is in a relationship with Minato who although is actually a consenting adult, looks like he is a high school student. I tried to get over it but I couldn't and it made me feel really uncomfortable.

Now to the things I absolutely loved about Cherry Magic! The main couple, Adachi and Kurosawa, have got to be one of the few genuinely healthy BL couples out there and with the way their relationship developed in the show, they also have got to be one of the best relationships I've seen in a BL drama. The characters were so perfectly cast with the highlight of the show being the incredible acting performances from both Akaso and Machida. They are both such incredible actors and their comedic timing was so perfect, not once could I take my eyes off of them when they were on screen. Honestly, if the characters were played by anyone else, the show wouldn't have worked, thats how perfect the chemistry was between the two actors. You will never be bored with them on screen. Although there were only 12 episodes, each with a running time of roughly 24 minutes, Adachi and Kurosawa's relationship and love for each other felt so real and genuine, making Cherry Magic so special.

One scene that stuck out to me the most for the incredible acting performance was the scene where Adachi confesses to Kurosawa about his magic and he breaks up with him. Although I tend to not like the trope where the couple breaks up in the second to last episode only to get back together in the end, I think it actually works for this show. The scene itself was so well written, acted and directed that I rewatched it multiple times because it just gave all the angst in the best way and like I said before, the acting was just incredible. All the true acting was shown through their eyes and the raw emotion they conveyed was truly felt through the screen. But of course, the angst didn't last long and we were given one of my favourite scenes in the whole show, the firework/proposal scene. I genuinely did not expect them to be engaged that soon considering they were only together for not that long but I think it makes sense for them. I also loved how Kurosawa proposed with pens rather than a ring in consideration for Adachi, it made the whole thing personal to them.
Another scene between Adachi and Kurosawa that stuck out to me was the scarf scene in one of the earlier episodes. If I had to pick a moment in the show where the progression towards their relationship really starts, I would have to pick that scene. The scene itself wasn't anything big, with Kurosawa just wrapping his scarf around Adachi's neck but despite how simple it was, it said so much.

I really adore Adachi and Kurosawa and watching them progress as people as their relationship developed made this show so special to me. I especially want to point out Adachi's growth considering how in the beginning he was so shy and kept to himself, only having one friend to in the end having a boyfriend and a larger support net of friends. In the show itself you see the characters talk about how inspiring Adachi is to them, and in a strange way he kinda inspired me a bit too. Watching Adachi kinda reminded me of my past self and I guess it was oddly therapeutic to watch his confidence and self-esteem grow with each episode. Thats another thing I love about this show! You initially watch it for the romance but you find yourself appreciating it for so much more than that. Cherry Magic finds a way to talk about topics of self-love, anxiety, growth and the different relationships we form as evolving people all in a BL romcom.

I'm nearing the end of my review but before I say my final notes, I just want to mention one other thing. In the opening scene of episode 1 we see a guy urgently riding his bike to some place and going past our main character, Adachi, who is waiting to cross the road. I didn't think much about that scene considering it was the opening scene of the show until we saw that scene in its full context in episode 12 and my jaw dropped! We find out that the entire time it was future Adachi that we saw in the opening scene riding the bike and past Adachi saw him (obviously not knowing it was himself) while waiting to cross the road. It was in that scene where it hit me how much had really changed in the 12 episodes for our main character and how much he's changed himself, I felt kinda proud of Adachi. Although if I'm being honest, I'm not sure how that works or if it's related to the magical realism aspect of the show but I doubt that it matters at all really.

Cherry Magic is going down as not only the best BL of 2020 but one of the best of all time! and I know that it is a big claim to make but I am not exaggerating one bit when I say that. I am really excited for the Cherry Magic movie coming out in April 2022 and cannot wait to see Adachi and Kurosawa as an established couple after Adachi loses his magical ability!

If you love funny and heartwarming BL dramas, then this is the right one for you!
Rewatch Value: 10/10

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This drama....*sigh*.... I've got a lot to say about this drama

The first couple of episodes were so interesting and absolutely refreshing with Dan Oh realising that she is an extra in a comic book and deciding to change her fate. At least that's what the show pitched to everyone. Yeah no this show pitched L I E S. bold faced, clickbait lies.
I seriously don't know what happened after the first couple of episodes but the show suddenly pulled a reverse uno and all of a sudden turned into the k-drama cliche romance story which THIS SAME SHOW MADE FUN OF like TWO SECONDS AGO. I was confusion for like a hot minute and suddenly the show which I praised for being so refreshing and having an interesting plot became a mess. With SOOOOOO MANYYYY repetitive scenes and uninteresting characters as the main focus, watching this show became a chore. I was like begging at this point for something NEW to actually happen but nope and everytime I thought something different was going to be explored further other than Dan Oh's EXCRUCIATINGLY PAINFUL TO WATCH love triangle with Ha Ru and Baek Kyung, for example Dried Squid Fairy and his love with Su Hyang, Do Hwa's character or Baek Kyung with a potiental character arc (finding his true self, love or both). Like seriously how did Su Hyang, a character that came in around the last few episodes, have more substance as a character than Ha Ru. Nam Joo was more interesting than Ha Ru. Even the unknown writer was more interesting than Ha Ru. I initially thought 'I can't be the ONLY one who had these opinions about the show ' but after reading other people's reviews on the show here, I'm so glad that other people felt this way as well.

If you thought this was the worst of it all T H E E N D I N G was when I gave up trying to care about the characters. I'm not even going to talk about the ending that's how annoyed I was.
I swear this show spent like half of their budget making Dan Oh say 'Ha Ru' for like 15 minutes and have her "fall" from chest pains for majority of the show. Not only that but this show left SOOO many unanswered questions with TOO MANYYY plot holes.

Conclusion: The only characters that were my favourite were Do Hwa, Baek Kyung (the actor for this character can SERIOUSLY act) and Dried Squid Fairy. Overall I think this show had such an interesting premise that had so much going for it with amazing cast and acting but it just became wasted potiental. If you're someone that likes cliche love or still find this show interesting, watch it. But if you are someone like me who thought that the show was going to be about a girl who wants to change her fate and be independent in her fate than BOYYYYY will you be absolutely
D I S A P P O I N T E D.

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a BL parody

This show/movie? is genuinely so funny! I found myself laughing multiple times from the main characters comedic moments. In its own way 'Absolute BL' reminded me of Extraordinary You with how they both have main characters who figure out they are in a comic world of some sorts but in this case it's a BL world. Absolute BL is definitely a comedy rather than a romance show and is a parody of BL tropes without it mocking the actual genre.
Its very short show but it's definitely a fun quick watch.
I'm excited to see what will happen in season 2 considering that this season left in a cliffhanger.
I quickly want to note that the OP is genuinely so good and so unexpected the first time I saw it. Stuff like that along with the add visual effects for example the flowers, music and random beams of light that appear on the main character really add something more to the comedic aspect of the show.

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Romance or Bromance? That is the question!

Where do I even begin?
The start of the drama was really strong, with Tine and Sarawat's interactions being the highlight of every episode. The premise of the story (faking dating trope) from the plot synopsis sounded so interesting and I found myself getting excited to see how the relationship between Tine and Sarawat would develop overtime however, like many other people, I found that the execution fell horribly flat.

Now I don't know about you guys but I have read and watched countless stuff involving the fake-dating trope and I would have to say that 2gether incorporated the trope in their show in the worst way. A huge part of the fake-dating trope is the actual fake-DATING but they didn't even seem like they were even trying with the dating part. The only times they would pretend to be a couple (which they didn't even try to make believable) was when Green would appear which were only like 4 times. I don't even know how Green fell for it at all.
There were cute moments here and there but overall, I found myself questioning what direction the show is taking with the couple. It seemed like the show were just half-arsing everything and weren't actually putting any effort in the relationship especially from Tine's side of things. In the first half of the show, Sarawat seemed to be putting all the effort with all the flirting and banter which I'm not even going to deny, was the only thing keeping me watching the show. Overall, the first half of the show was solid, a little lackluster in certain areas, but that is why I was getting so excited for the second half because that would be when Tine and Sarawat become an established couple..........oh how naïve I was!

The second half of the show was so disappointing. Although before I go deep into the criticisms, I should say that there some scenes that I really did enjoy watching. The scene where Sarawat and Tine are in that abandoned bus, waiting for the rain to stop and Sarawat shows him the video of his past self singing a song he wrote about Tine from their first Scrubb concert. I thought that scene was so cute and it was one of the only times where I thought to myself "wow, them liking eachother actually seems believable here".
My fave moments (the scenes that actually made me believe that Tine and Sarawat were in a relationship:
(In no particular order)
1. The bus scene I just mentioned above
2. The 2 scenes where they are sleeping on the coach together (1. when Tine refuses to sleep in the bed with Sarawat so Sarawat joins him on the coach and 2. when Type is sleeping over and Tine joins Sarawat over at the coach so they can sleep together)
3. After they moved in together and Sarawat pulled Tine in from his waist (a small moment but sweet moment)
This show lacked so many small moments like the one I mentioned in bullet point three above and its usually the small moments between couples that honestly MAKE the romance. And yes the big moments like singing to your boyfriend or saying I like you are great but the small moments like shy smiles, physical touches, stolen glances, holding hands or soft embraces (just intimate moments that make you think that the only people that exist in this world are you two) are things that were either missing or so rare to see in this show. The most that this couple did to show affection was patting on the head -_-

Now onto the second half criticisms! Like many others have stated in their own reviews, the second half of the show literally seemed to give up on the couple and where in the first half I stated that the highlight of the show was Sarawat's flirty banter, even that was compromised in the second half. There were moments in the second half where I thought to myself "that character would've never reacted that way/ done that thing". It was kinda shocking how different the first and second half of the show felt but what was more shocking was when I remembered that the show was supposed to be a BL drama. I honestly wouldn't have minded all the flaws with show if the one thing that was great was Tine and Sarawat's relationship, but that was not the case unfortunately.
In the title of the review, I named it 'Romance or Bromance? That is the question!' and for good reason. Sarawat and Tine from the very beginning felt so off for some reason but in the beginning of the show I gave the show the benefit of the doubt, hoping for better relationship development as the show went on. As I stated earlier on in the review, I was quite naïve. As the episodes went on I was trying to figure out what could be the cause of this: was it the writing, the chemistry between Sarawat and Tine, the direction of the show? but I think it could have been a mix of all of these things. I don't know what direction the actors were told to go with for their characters but whatever it was ruined the romance of the show (which is 100% the reason for people watching the show at all). I felt like the characters were more like close friends than an actual couple and a lot of the time we were being told by both the main and supporting characters that Tine and Sarawat liked each other but we weren't shown that at all. The writing of the show was so weak in the romance aspect which makes no sense because this is literally a BL drama!

The show relied heavily on showing that the couple liked each other by using the jealousy trope constantly. Now don't get me wrong, I like when shows use jealousy because it can be fun....but to use it as the only thing showing the viewers that the couple care for each other than theres a problem here. There are so many ways this could've been done, like having the couple go on dates or just anything else (As I'm writing this I'm questioning whether they even held hands at all!). From the completely unnecessary Mil liking Tine plot line that made literal ZERO sense, I was thinking that the jealousy plot line has been overdone and the show would stop but oh my did they milk this trope even worse than they did before in the last 2 episodes of the season.
In the last 2 episodes of the show, the writers decided to throw in the "ex-girlfriend wants to get back together" trope. Now I like angst in relationships when it makes sense and isn't just thrown in as a last minute thought but this?? was not it. The whole thing stemmed from misunderstanding and had to be resolved by the ex-girlfriend (technically never dated Sarawat but still) telling Tine that Sarawat only likes him not her.
The finale of the show was the worst part of the entire show which makes me really upset because this show had so much potential to be so much more than it turned out to be.
I will be watching 'Still 2gether' though because I've seen people say that it seemed like writers took into consideration all the criticisms fans had with this season and fixed a lot of it in Still 2gether.

Would I rewatch this season? probably not but I would rewatch the clips that I did really like.

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a wattpad story come to life

Literally, the only thing I liked about this drama was the main couple other than that I didn't like or care about anything related to the plot at all. It came to the point (I would say around ep 17 ish) where I just had to skip all the scenes that didn't have the main couple. Another thing I couldn't stop thinking about was Lu Jin's "casual" outfit. I don't know if anyone else noticed but he wears the SAME casual outfit multiple times like he ain't got the money to buy new clothes. I was just so confused and I HATE his jeans, like who let him wear that??? with all that money you would think he would hire a stylist but nope instead I was forced to stare at studded jeans. Also, I didn't realise it was an age-gap drama until I started watching it and it kept on bugging me the entire time mostly because Shengnan seemed to act almost like a child at certain points and Lu Jin would try to seem much younger. I can't like when the second love interest came in, I started rooting for him even though I knew it was never going to happen. The drama just felt like a Wattpad book come to life, not necessarily a bad thing but the drama felt weird at certain parts (the show suddenly introducing that Lu Jin has a brother??? and focusing so much on companies?? around the last couple of episodes? Then also trying to start a weird love triangle with the Lu brothers and Shengnan??). I really liked the first 2/4th of the show, but it felt like the plot fell apart and changed halfway through. Like there was no real cohesive plotline from beginning to end which is the main reason I said it felt like I was watching a Wattpad story written by some high school kid in their spare time. Another thing that annoyed me was how Shengnan became the main chef after barely working there and even after that, she stopped going to work?? I was so confused. All that trouble with the chefs and her workplace drama was so pointless because she stopped going to work anyways and ended up opening her own restaurant. Overall, it wasn't bad but I won't find myself recommending it to anyone.

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teacher-student trope VS second male lead syndrome???

I did not like how the main love interest was literally her teacher and she's his student. What made it worse was he reciprocated his feelings for her like he isn't grown and she's a minor. The only thing stopping them two from being together at that point was her rejecting his confession.......like are you for real right now????!!! THAT was the reason, not that...oh I don't know, it is illegal??!! and so wrong in many ways. literally, the minor said no, not the adult. I was literally BEGGING!!! for her to get with the second love interest and thank God she did! They were cute and I was pleasantly surprised with the love story between the girl and the second love interest. That is the only reason my rating is that high for a movie with a teacher x student trope.

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