Writing 101: How to make a happy ending a bad ending

If a happy ending and a cameo from the original IP (Strong Woman Do Bongsoon) couldn't even save a show then it means it's very bad storytelling.

You've got as FL a reckless girl with superhuman power. Overload it with an overacting, self righteous with a savior complex FL's mother. Sprinkle in the ditzy FL's grandmother with a cringe love story. Then add in a kind of wimpy, goofy cop with gold digging parents as ML. Garnish it with a sexy villain with a tragic back story. That is the recipe for making you root for the villain and his redemption instead of the good guys. The story should have been about Namsoon but Geum Ja kept being pushed to the forefront. It would have been fine if Geum Ja was a good mother and on the surface she is but she truly isn't. Her fat phobic comments to her son, her derision for her husband, her self righteousness just because she is strong turned me off. The comedy were cringe and weren't funny, not at all. The only people that I really liked were Namsoon's adoptive parents, the villain Ryu Shio, Shio's childhood friend and Namsoon's father.

The way they ended Ryu Shio's arc was so tragic that even though the story supposedly have a 'happy' ending, it made me unsatisfied and wished that I have never watched this drama. Will I rewatch? Will I recommend it to others? Definitely no, unless it is to give an example of very bad and lousy writing with lousy and overacting actors.

Leggi di Più

I wished for a good drama, and this delivered in an unexpected way

Just finished watching it and will definitely rewatch it again. Yes, it was THAT satisfying. By the end, even though there were still unlikeable characters, they were at the very least understandable. I also felt that the songs used to propel the drama forward were appropriate for the scenes where they were used. My favorites were Someday, Dream us, and Night and day.

This drama was not perfect by any means. There were some things that were irrational if you examine them closely but then again if you do, then it will lose the emotional edge. Since the drama gave a balanced reality and fantasy I felt it deserved a perfect rating.

To be honest, I only watched this after about half of the series had already aired because I thought a story of an "old" singer would be boring. But since I really liked Park Eunbin in her earlier works, I gave this a go and ended up chasing the drama.

This is about Seo Mokha. Accompanied by her friend, Kiho, she set out to audition for Roo Ranjoo, her favorite singer. Unfortunately, she got separated from him and was stranded on a deserted island for 15 years before she was finally rescued. Can she meet Kiho again? Can she still go after her dream when so much time has passed?

The kids that played Mokha and Kiho nailed their roles. They seemed vulnerable yet resolute. I look forward to their future projects. The side characters and their stories were also a nice touch. I also liked the 'who is Kiho' mystery though it was pretty obvious. The Kiho reveal and their reunion was one of the show's highlights for me. The girl bonding between Mokha and Ranjoo was also good. I think there were 2 castaway divas in this story, one was Mokha who was physically stranded and the other was Ranjoo who was emotionally cast away. Both became overcomers.

Just a touch of caution, this tackled domestic abuse. Also, there may be times that you can see Extraordinary Woo Young Woo since Eunbin is playing a society awkward person. If those are non-issues for you then I definitely recommend watching this drama.

Leggi di Più

Interesting premise but nonsensical development

As a drama about a nontraditional heroine who still gets a traditional prince charming in the end, I wanted to like this. I really did. Her appearance were anything but what is expected of a heroine. She was at first considered unattractive by her husband, the emperor, but through the course of the drama, he learned to love her, become independent, be a better man, be a better king.

I was glad that the FL is chubby while the ML was dreamy. That he ignored the traditional beauty SFL but can't help falling for the FL's personality. The leads chemistry is subtle but it's there. I can't choose a more handsome ML than Li Hongyi. He portrayed a believable slow but reluctant attraction for the FL. You can feel his confusion about his feelings but you can see that he's slowly falling in love. When he's jealous, you can immediately feel it just by changes in his eyes. Jackie as the FL was also a good choice to be a strong female lead. That she loved the ML at first, lost her love for him, then loved him again because she now knew him felt organic.

The acting was not a problem. I blame the script for my disappointment. As a romcom, it was funny in some instances but mostly the jokes felt flat. Most of the time I felt like the FL and her father were pushing the court to accept her. In other dramas, the FL's antics would have surely landed her in jail, but she was always tolerated because her father essentially holds the power more than the emperor. She frequently used the palace's PA system to air her displeasure for the emperor or to show off her talents.

I admit that I quite enjoyed the first few episodes and I tried to gave it a chance but show keeps trying to make me accept character reactions that made no sense. The emperor had diarrhae because of her cooking but she got away scot free? I think it was when she taught a Bollywood like dance and people supposedly enjoyed it that I gave up on understanding this drama.

The SML also did not help. He was not swoon worthy enough to sway my heart. I found him whiny most of the time and he kept on preening like a peacock.

Aside from the leads, I liked the grand chancellor, his villain-not a villain stance gave this drama it's unpredictability.

All in all, this is a good enough drama, the kisses and longing looks were fluttery. Just be prepared to throw away your common sense and accept events as they are.

Leggi di Più

Lighthearted, engaging and funny

With just a few episodes, I already knew I'm going to love this romantic comedy and be with it until the end. If you are against female chasing male stories, then this is not for you. But if you don't mind it and decided to watch this, watch out for the epilogues after some episodes that will make you understand certain scenes.

Esther Yu as Yu Meiren has charmed me once again while Vin Zhang seems more attractive as Zhuang Yu than in any of his previous roles (maybe except as KO in Love 020). This is the type of drama that you watch to relax. The story is very simple. It is about a romance between a charming bird specialist turned beauty blogger and a reserved botany professor. What draws me in is their obvious attraction to each other despite denying it to themselves.

I like that YM seems like an empowered quick thinking woman who knows what she wants and goes for it. She knows when to use her cutesy persona but is more comfortable with her nerdy persona. For ZY, I like that he's dedicated to his work and wants to try to improve the world but he's been kind of a jerk to YM until he realized how much he really love her.

If not for the over exposure of the 2nd couple, I would probably rate this higher. It would have been better if this was maybe a 24 Eps drama and does not included a loveline between the 2nd CP.

The OSTs are very good. The opening song of 'Two People's little forest' is so soothing, making you look forward to the romance while the duet 'All seems the same' of Esther Yu and Vin Zhang is uplifting and sweet. 'Find You' by Vin Zhang feels full of determination while Esther Yu's 'Sunny day after the rain' feels optimistic. 'Welcome to my World' is such a fun song and lastly 'Want to be by your side' which was used for most sad scenes is full of longing. I would rewatch this but will still skip the 2nd couple.

Leggi di Più

Love is a choice, not just hormones

I know some people were disappointed in the endgame of this drama. Most of them wanted a Jojo x SunOh reconciliation. But from season 1, I've always felt that being with SunOh was toxic to Jojo and Hyeyeong or even her original boyfriend will be a better match for her.

This is not really a spoiler because it all happened in S1 but you may skip this paragraph because I'm about to rant. What people don't seem to realize was that in S1, SunOh only approached Jojo because he wants to show Hyeyeong that he can get the girl his best friend was crushing on. He's a childish man who had almost everything handed to him in a platter. His mom is an actress, his dad a politician, a supposedly 'perfect' family. His only complaint is his mother does not love him. He looked to Hyeyeong to fill his need for affection. He can never support Jojo emotionally because he's so damaged and wants to keep affirming people's love for him. He was at first jealous of Jojo because she took Hyeyeong's attention from him. He was just testing how much Hyeyeong was willing to give up for him. Then he started an almost stalker behavior. If it was an average looking man, what he did would be scary not sweet. And he kissed her knowing she has a boyfriend? This guy's moral compass was very wrong. To top it off, he somehow made her feel pitiful when he paid for her lunch money and he made her a target of hate but was not able to protect her from his 'fans'. And he was so obsessively clingy, first to Hyeyeong then to Jojo. Okay, maybe Jojo was wrong by installing the shield but what ticks me is that he didn't even support her anymore once she stopped ringing his love alarm, he just felt sorry for himself.

Some people can't seem to find a reason why SunOh and Jojo broke up but it's very simple. Being with SunOh in HS only made her feel small. His fans kept saying she should just die. She felt unworthy to be alive all over again. Yes, he kept ringing her alarm, a telltale sign he still loves/wants her, but he never ever became someone she really needed, someone she can rely on to stand by her no matter what, someone who really respects her and her boundaries. What's funny is that in HS, SunOh kept saying it's Jojo's choice who will be with her and she is not a thing but became angry when the choice wasn't him.

So I think you can guess that I never really rooted for SunOh despite liking their cutesy dates and fluffy kisses. I liked the boyfriend better because even after they broke up, he still cared about Jojo. Hyeyeong was the best match for Jojo because he was emotionally stable and he doesn't even have the 'perfect' life. He has a 'criminal's son' tag for goodness sakes. But he was just always there for her when she needed him. Even when Jojo disappeared from people who might love him, he still rang her alarm 10 times.

Unlike with SunOh, Hyeyeong and Jojo's love may not be instant attraction from both sides. But it is a love that's built on respect and support, a love you want to keep. I really like what Jojo said to SunOh when he found out about the shield "You made me install the shield but Hyeyeong made me want to remove it". It was Hyeyeong who made her feel worthy of being alive.

Some says that it was not fair that SunOh settled for Yukjoo, but for me she was exactly what he needed. Someone who will constantly give him affection.

I couldn't give a perfect rating because I didn't like the other characters. I really couldn't relate to Gulmi, her mom, Brian and DukGu. They felt like plot devices, their characters were not really fleshed out. If it was only about the love triangle arc, I would have rated this 10/10. The underlying theme is love is a choice, choose to live, choose to love.

Leggi di Più

A story on fighting for your dream

This gave me a very bad first impression that I almost dropped it. The second hand embarrassment I felt for Tong Nian as she kind of stalked Han Shangyan in the first few episodes was just too much. After Episode 4, it got better. I did not really like the main romance because I felt that Tong Nian was too submissive. It's good thing that he never really took advantage of her. Grandpa was their matchmaker, without him they would not get together or get back with each other. The second CP of Mi and Yaya made up for the sweetness I was looking for in this show.

More than the romance, the journey of team solo as they fight for country pride either as individuals or as a group was the main essence of this show.

Leggi di Più

Messy, confusing and boring

I kept waiting for fireworks and it never came. This has the most disjointed storytelling I've ever watched. There were a lot of storylines that did not seem to be connected to each other at all. It might be better if this was separated into mini dramas instead of being presented together.

Lee Hsin Ai as Weiwei and Ma Kui as Ling Xiao did not feel like leads, I just guessed they were because the story started with their meet cute. Then this was followed by the meet cute with the second male lead Zhang Yunlong (aka Leon Zhang) as Zhao Zennan. All this were done with cliches that made Weiwei look stupid and clumsy. I kept watching hoping to see some chemistry between any of the leads. When I finally felt some chemistry between Weiwei and Zennan in Ep 7, she then goes to have a relationship with Ling Xiao because of a doll when they didn't seem to click at all! Until the last episode, I was not convinced that Ling Xiao and Weiwei was endgame since they don't feel like they were lovers even when they were hugging, while Zennan and Weiwei had sparks just by staring at each other. Maybe this was because Leon Zhang just looks really cute and sexy when he's being flirty while Ma Kui acts like wood most of the time. Also I felt like Ling Xiao was a weak character because he has a hard time saying no (except maybe to his parents). Imagine a boyfriend who rejects his girlfriend's offer to go to the movies but instead agrees to go with girl who obviously has a crush on him and be her hugging post just to apologize! Then buys roses for that same girl just because a vendor urged him. I would really have to be very understanding to let that go.

The only satisfying relationship arc is with the director Shikai and tomboyish Ning Yu.

Then the drama unexpectedly hits you with a revenge plot with the hidden villain trying to takeover the ML and the SML's family businesses. Though slightly interesting, I wondered why they did not report the villain for stock manipulation.

Characters had inconsistent setup. For example, Ning Xue felt it was ok that she chose another guy over the director but was angry when she found out her sister and the director were dating, even saying her sister stole her boyfriend. Zennan was the overbearing CEO to Weiwei then he suddenly became nicer without reason. Ling Xiao's mom said that Weiwei has inferior breeding and should not be allowed to be with her son when she herself married the family driver.

So while there were some good acting (i.e. Leon Zhang) here and there, most were boring (i.e. Ma Kui) and the script was obviously bad. This made the drama so unfocused that you easily lose interest in characters and it resulted into a mess.

Leggi di Più

Beautiful artwork, epic love story. Best xianxia of 2022

To start off, the artworks in this drama is the best I've seen so far. You can see that a lot of thought was put into designing the drawings and the scene settings. The costumes in the 3 realms are so distinct, white for the fairy realm, mostly black for the moon tribe and reddish tints for the mortal world.

The music is also amazing. My favorite is 'I still remember that day' which played when DongFang QingCang (ML) asked Changheng (SML) to choose whether he'll save Orchid (FL) or the fairy realm. It's just full of regret. The OSTs of this drama is now part of my regular playlist and might stay there for a little long time. I'm still trying to find the haunting flute song.

On the acting, I love Esther Yu and Dylan Wang as Orchid and DFQC. They are perfect for the roles and I am totally aboard their ship. I have to give Esther some credit because I felt Orchid was annoying in the beginning but she made me love her. She may have a weak body but she's smart, caring and loyal. Dylan just shines as DFQC. I really loved how he transitioned from a person who has no feelings to a person who feels very deeply. Dylan had so many microexpressions that I never thought he can actually have. He proved his naysayers wrong in this drama by showing he can really act. I also loved it whenever he shows off his badass powers. All I can say is that both actors deserve awards for this drama. Esther completely charmed me and I still can't get over Dylan's pleading eyes. And their kisses, wow the kisses are the most believeable kisses I've seen. Each of the kisses is needed in light of the storytelling and not just for fan service. When they have accidental kisses, both actors mouths were closed. When it's a forced kiss, the one who's forcing the kiss looks more passionate while the other looks unwilling. When it's a lovers' kiss, even though they don't really look like they're french kissing, both looks like they're into it. Their reactions after the kisses are also consistent with their characters at that particular parts of the drama.

Another great revelation was Zhang Ling He as ChangHeng. The microexpressions of this guy is at par with Dylan. As the God of War in the fairy realm, he is great in his own right and deserves someone who is also great. He is the kind of SML you also want to root for but just can't because you know the ML is really the best choice for the FL. I really love his backstory and character development. If only I can split Orchid into two so both guys can be with her. But alas there's only one Orchid and she can only belong to DFQC.

On the story itself, it's just obvious how much work was done to the script. The storytelling may not be perfect but it was very good. What you think is just some dialogue in one scene can turn out to be very significant later. The characters' actions were consistent and logical. The support characters like Sangque, Jieli, Dayin, Ronghao, Chidi, Xunfeng, etc were given ample time to also have character development, but not too much, meaning they did not overpower the main story. I also did not hate any character, well okay I strongly disliked Yunzong, but maybe he was needed as someone really ancient to explain some things. The ending, though good, wasn't quite enough. An epilogue or an additional episode would probably make this perfect.

I have to admit that I still can't let go and want to see these actors in new dramas. I want Charles Lin and Hong Xiao to have their own drama, Esther and Dylan to have a modern drama and even if I'm a Dixin shipper, I still want a Zhang Ling He and Esther drama. But for now, I guess I'll just have to be content in rewatching this drama.

Leggi di Più

Aww, another wonderful youth drama

I only watched this because of Zhang Ling He because of his wonderful performance in 'Love between fairy and devil' and found another good drama.

Like other youth dramas, it uses the cold straight A student ML who loves a warm but not studious FL trope. Its notable difference in other youth dramas is the depiction of a differently abled person as an ML. So Jianghao's coldness is understandable. It came from his insecurities of having a father that is no good and having an artificial leg. He only trusts Lu Miao because as she's his childhood friend/almost sibling who never judged him. I loved how the drama showed that being differently abled has some advantages and was not a disadvantage to love at all. Another thing I learned was 5211314 is another way of saying 'I love you forever' because it sounds like "wu er yi" = "wo ai ni".

Leggi di Più

Too long but still a gem

I immediately fell in love with this gem of a drama and if asked I'll rename this as 'The Bandit who Loved Me'. I've been on their ship from episode 1.
If it's just the two of them I would probably have rated this a 10/10. The fact that there was no big misunderstanding between them for all 40 episodes makes me love it more. The main goal of the drama seems to be equality for all.

The FL was a timid little mouse because she's a concubine's daughter. But being with the ML even just for a night made her stand up for herself. I liked that she wasn't truly scared of the ML even when she knows he's a bandit. She was even amazed by him during his battle with the scholars. As the story goes on, with his love, she began to have a backbone and became confident that she deserved to be loved.

The ML was too good to be real. His talents and leadership skill just can't be hidden. His back story was so heart wrenching and his efforts to move forward was amazing. Of course the tenderhearted FL can't do anything but feel moved. I'm glad that he loved the FL so much that he can even let go of revenge. In a sense, she tempers him. And he had a lot of patience. Imagine they were married but not really lived as husband and wife until about 2 years after. But still there were a lot of sweet scenes in between.

My favorite character in this whole series aside from the leads is actually the little emperor. He was just too cute reciting all those mature lines in his obviously childish voice.

I think a lot of people will also love this drama.

Leggi di Più

Charming with a very strong female lead

This is the first drama where I wrote a review before I've finished a series. Yes, this series is THAT good. And now that I completed it, I still say that this is a recommended watch. I thought there would be some kind of revenge from the FL to the ML to spice the story up but there was none. I love how grounded this drama world was, introducing us to the world of investment while teasing us with the relationship of the leads. I also admit that I am a fan of go-getter FLs and Seven Tan as Ning Meng doesn't disappoint. The FL has no illusions about herself but was not afraid to test her limits. When she felt that the ML is bullying her, she tried to hold her peace but did not just take it lying down. This girl was no doormat, she gave as good as she got. She's loyal too and never burned any bridges during her career growth. Kenny Lin as Lu Jiming was also great. He played the brilliant but temperamental boss perfectly. His words were sometimes too harsh that I want to slap him myself. His childishness was so much part of his personality base that when he's jealous, he became petty. His micro-expressions ranging from confused to secretly happy/proud were so good that I can believe that he was already in love in the first few episodes but did not know it yet. That he's actually softhearted and caring was teased during the first episodes but was clearly shown in the last episodes.

I also liked that LJM started to encourage NM once he discovered her motivations in becoming an investor. They became the catalyst for growth of the other, without them even trying. I would have liked more scenes of them being a couple but I'm still satisfied with the ending.

Leggi di Più

Aside from SoMun getting hotter, a lot could be better

Halfway through and I still don't feel as attached as I did in season 1. I expected a fleshing out of characters by this time, but they still haven't even shown the main villains' back story and how they ended up together. In S1, I saw how the characters grew. So Mun getting more powerful, Hana, Motak and Mae-ok becoming more at peace with their past, So Mun's friends overcoming bullying, CheongSin becoming evil to please his "father" and so on. But in S2, I didn't see any character growth at all, even with the new counter. As for Ma Juseok, the main focus of this season's hullabaloo, his becoming evil just doesn't flow smoothly as it did with CheongSin, I don't feel his conflict as a good person with the evil spirit within him. If the story don't improve by the next episode, I will surely drop this.

Leggi di Più

Intelligent, fast-paced, best modern drama of 2022

This is a time loop drama done right. It's cohesive and coherent. I've watched when it aired in Jan 2022 and rewatched it again to see if it was as good as I remembered. And it still is. And it's just 15 episodes which is very short compared with other Cdramas so it is a good introduction piece for those who are used to watching Kdramas.

Time loops like Groundhog Day tend to bore me because they repeatedly show the protagonist doing the same things over and over again. They also tend to be so inconsistent that I usually regret watching them in the first place. So it was really mind-blowing (pun intended haha) how much I enjoyed Reset.

Never once did I feel that this drama insulted my intelligence. The leads' growth and their romance (which was a bonus) were gradual and logical. The police and other passengers' reactions seems like they were experiencing the explosion each time for the first time.

There's even a reason for the loop. This is not really a spoiler because it's a dialogue in Ep 2 but you can just skip this paragraph if you want. When a person dies unjustly, he goes into a loop of that day unless he can find a person to replace him. I did not understand this dialogue until I have actually finished the series.

Also, unlike other dramas, it's not open-ended at all giving me a satisfying closure.

Leggi di Più

Good concept, sad execution

A man who developed a split personality because of guilt in seeing his father kill so many people. A woman out for revenge but fell in love with the son of the man who killed her parents. This was my kind of drama or so I thought.

I love revenge stories. I also love healing stories. I expected to love this drama but more than halfway through its run and I still can't get invested in any of the characters. Most of the actors are overacting so the characters felt fake somehow especially the ChungTa character. Also, when ChungTa changes from male to female, you can definitely see the pauses in the camera work. Some of the scene sets used also looked cheap like the dream world where Akhee and SajoHyun meet. The director also used a lot of recall scenes instead of just telling the story as it happens. An example of this was the scene of Kyera encouraging SajoHyun to return to the palace then the next scenes show what was happening in the palace, after that was the coronation, then SajoHyun recalled how Kyera was finally able to convince him to return. Maybe the director thought this was more dramatic but for me it just became disjointed storytelling.

This drama just keep feeling more like a low budget school project not a station drama.

Leggi di Più

Inferior than SOOD but still worth a watch

I was so excited when they announced this adaptation of Someday or One day because I truly loved the OG.

I kept asking myself if I hadn't loved SOOD so much, would I have watched this? Sadly, the answer is no. This didn't hook me from the first episode like SOOD did. ATCY muted the grief that future girl felt when she lost her fiancee which was what got me. The OST for time travel also wasn't as memorable. The leads didn't feel like high school students. The homeless man look of old Nam Siyeon was unnecessary. Still, I am glad they didn't ruin the story.

If you just want to watch something to pass the time or just know the story, I would still recommend this. But for a rewatch, I would still return to the OG.

Leggi di Più