Slam Dunk or Fouled Out?

I didn't know basketball could be this dangerous, nor did I realise how easily you could mess up something with potential. I decided I would just list down the good and the not good, because as it stands, the things listed could easily be two different dramas.

The Good
- The Basketball Club. Just as a whole, the focus on the sport was something I really enjoyed. A rag tag team, an unconventional and unexpectedly good coach, a key player recruited from an unexpected place who has a complicated past with the team captain, this is the stuff that makes a sports drama.. a sports drama.
The way they went from a group of completely uncoordinated individuals to a team was amazing. I saw an actual bond between all the characters part of the basketball club, great teamwork, the underdogs who stood by each other through all the ridiculous plot points that were thrown at them.
That club of fifteen or so individuals were by far the best thing about this series, I found myself cheering for each of their baskets, rooting for them to get where they wanted.
And the actual game scenes were so aesthetically shot, except for some of those cartoon effects, the shots were precise and visually strong.

- Romance. Although it came by far and few times, I actually liked the romance. Just to clarify, this was a coming of age drama with two kisses, but I'm thinking romance wasn't the first thing on the director's mind with this story. And even then, there's something about Meen and Ping that I've never been quite able to figure out. Whether the story is nonsense or if the romance is minimal, they have some sort of charm as a pairing that I've never understood the logic behind, but I've stopped trying to figure it out. I just go with the flow and I can confirm they serve as much as they possibly could have.

- Friendships. Once again in relation to the basketball club, but I have to highlight the friendship between them. Fifteen members who went from being practically strangers or from having strained relationships to developing friendships and relationships that were refreshing to watch amidst all the frustrating and unnecessary scenes. I genuinely believe there isn't a thing they wouldn't do for each other, between the players, the managers and the coach, these people were the most genuine and well developed characters in the series, with good reason.
They may have started out on the wrong foot, but true to form, basketball is a team sport, and they became the best of teams. The scene where the team literally showed up for the coach when he was going through a tough time actually had me in tears, and that's the thing, they always showed up for each other. I really wish they had spent more time developping this, compared to, well.. the points that follow.

The Should Have Been Better
I say should have been better, but I really mean completely unnecessary.

- The Basketball mafia. What was the purpose of the most aggressive villain in the series except to introduce Ryu? The entire focus on Ryu being forced to play street basketball was nonsense and it eventually led nowhere. There, I said it. They introduced this as if it were a big deal and would form a major crux of the story, but oof. It was concluded so lamely I had to laugh.

- One dimensional opposition. This was horrible. Ryu's mother and the science man who hated basketball were, I believe, literally added in to stir up drama that never existed. Maybe the drama with Ryu's mother was set up well, but the science man had no excuse being that extra about his funding. These could have been proper points of contention against the team, but a lot of yelling and whining that suddenly turns into unbounded support, it was as lame as it sounds.

- Unbalanced screentime. The basketball mafia, the one dimensional opposition and one more person who I'm yet to mention got way more screentime than they deserved. I wanted the majority of the focus to be on the game and the romance, but it sucks that things that were entirely unnecessary got more or at least equal screentime to the aspects that were worth watching.

- ATOM. No. Just no.
I mean, what was it that he actually did? Except for showing up unannounced at Zen's house and changing his hairstyle every next scene? I was convinced that he was a fictional character within the series who appeared like Beetlejuice, Ryu says his name out loud three times, and he appears in Zen's house out of thin air. No luck though, he was a very real character who played against Ryu and Zen in one match, played with Ryu and Zen in one match, and then caused a major confusing situation that was resolved in the last five minutes of the episode to give us the most anti - climactic of endings. I was hyper focused on Frank in this series, for all the wrong reasons.

Overall, this was a bag of mixed emotions. I loved some of it, didn't care for the rest. I think this could have been something worth it's while with a few changes, there were so many interesting characters and things to focus on, but when it comes down to the line, it was only okay.

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Anguishing Allure

The journey of Lada and Earn in rediscovering their spark was a painful one for them and us, but at the end of that path, there always seemed to be a glimpse of hope.

Misunderstandings, parental pressure and prejudice, scars of the past, rivals in love, these were just a few of the obstacles the leads had to overcome in order to resolve their issues and discover that they never stopped loving each other, but no one makes it easy for them, least of all themselves.

It was frustrating through and through to watch, but that was part of the formula, part of the experience. I found myself saying multiple times that none of this would have happened if they had just had communicated like they constantly did before it all went down and out, but all the drama and angst was part of the appeal. When one thing began to get resolved, the next problem cropped up, and that's just how it went along.
Weirdly enough, this is something I've seen a lot, but it's been quite a while and it took some getting used to before I was able to sit back and enjoy the drama as it came, because it kept coming.

Until that happened though, it was the chemistry between the leads that kept me in it. A healthy relationship and not, the leads definitely had enough chemistry to move the story on even when it seemed to be stalling. The acting was extremely good from the both of them, all their emotions were on full display and you could feel their pain and sadness as they did.

It was good, a good balance between romance, drama and slight comedy. It may take some getting used to, some of the scenes may seem extremely over the top but stick with it, and it may be a happy ending for the viewer as it was for them.

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A story of friendship

Even though there was a whole lot of shipping going on from one of the leads, the friendship had to have been my favourite. There were weirdly more kind of friendships than there were relationships for a series with three couples.

I will say, I quite liked Gap and Wah. They started off on the wrong foot, quite literally using each other (and being very open about it/not at opening up about it), but I loved the way they developed their relationship by actually having both of them take an interest in each other's passions. They were a good match for each other, their energy vibed, they were understanding of each other and had minimal misunderstandings, and even when they had arguments, each of their points of views were totally valid.

On the other hand, I very much disliked the Shogun - Maitoh - Green love triangle that was obviously never going to go Green's way. There wasn't anything particularly likeable about any of it, it was never going to break Green's way, and even then, the way they seemingly presented Shogun's crush on Maitoh as something that developed suddenly after watching Green and Toh interact closely didn't sit right with me. Didn't help that Green and Toh had more chemistry, and Shogun had better chemistry with Toh's younger brother in that one very short scene than he did with Toh the entire series.

I did want to see more of Paul and Nice though, they established their crush on each other and their relationship pretty early, but they barely got any screentime after that. They had their moments, both good and bad, but I liked the scenes of theirs that we got very much.

More than anything though, I really appreciated the friendship in this series. There was a massive friend group, besties, friends who are like your siblings, every kind of friendship vibe going on. I liked that they showed that it may not always be sunshine and rainbows, that you may not always have a great relationship, but you can have a great friendship in that moment, and in those moments they will stand by you. These scenes had a lot of comedic moments which were quite nice as well, and some genuinely moving scenes as well.

Another thing I really loved was how they called out toxic fans, throughout the episodes, all of them. There were a few instances where certain things the characters did felt very uncomfortable, but I love a show that is self aware enough to call that out. It was well done.

Even if there wasn't anything great to rave about, this series managed to make some good points while still maintaining it's light mood introduced in episode one. A casual watch with it serious moments, it has something for everyone.

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Childhood connection, and something more

One of the major aspects of J BLs is that they're usually too short to develop character depth when the story focuses on developing romantic relationships and emotional depth. At least, that's what I thought.

Living With Him is a sweet, slice of life drama about two childhood friends who unexpectedly find themselves living together after years of no contact between them. But when feelings develop between the two of them, they have to deal with their own emotions before addressing those of the other.

The series delves into the thoughts and emotions of Kazuhito and Natsukawa as individuals contemplating a change in dynamics between them before anything else. Showcasing their relationship as children and later as teenagers and adults, we get to see the passage of their relationship that led to them living together and also why they develop feelings for each other.

Amidst all this though, we barely get time to actually see their relationship develop as adults. It is incredibly and increasingly clear with every episode exactly why they like each other, based on aspects of their personalities and their experiences that led them to become the people they've become. But we just don't get the pay off we deserve after the massive buildup. The romance inevitably had to take a backseat to allow their personal growth, but when the story required it, it delivered on moments to establish their solidifying romance.

The result was a simple and sweet story of an understated transformation of a relationship from childhood friends to virtual strangers, and then lovers. I could spend hours analysing how their personalities reflect their thoughts and actions since this is a character driven story, but I'm just going to reflect on how much I enjoyed it as a love story.

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As advertised

This was as advertised, literally nothing else happened.

Both couples are shown after a year of dating, with Yi coming back to Thailand and meeting with Plaeng, and Gene and Nuea navigating their relationship after a year of dating.

They decorate the café for Christmas, teach each other how to make coffee and play the guitar and discuss stuff that happened over the past year and also what they have in store for them in the future.

There are two episodes, the first featured Yi and Plaeng, the second featured Gene and Nuea. Besides a ton of cute moments and a lot of conversations, there wasn't quite much else.

Also, this is the follow up to the finale of Coffee Melody, and in retrospect, it's a choice. The finale did have some updates on all the characters, but I would have preferred them in the special as well. It's just a weird production, a finale that didn't feel like one and a special that didn't feel like one either.

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A life alone doesn't necessarily mean a lonely life.

Tsutomu lives a life of solitude, alone in his mountain cabin, with rarely a visit from people. His only companions are his dog, his gardens and nature. Living season by season, month after month, life just goes by for the writer.

As he experiences nature bloom and wilt it's way as time passes, he reminisces his past and contemplates his future. Harvesting seasonal produce, cooking it the way he was taught to as a novice monk, reminiscing about his childhood. Meeting his editor, who worked with his late wife, who he cannot move on from, still hanging onto all remnants of her. His carpenter friend, his mother in law, his gardening, everything around him is a reminder of his past and it continues to dwell on his present.

A few unexpected events then allow him to contemplate on his future, whether he should embrace his past and gain closure. His slow life, seemingly devoid of meaning suddenly has more and less meaning than it did before.

An introspective, slow burner, even if doesn't manage to keep you on your toes, I don't think they ever meant it to.

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What-

If a drama was a question mark, this would be it.

I still don't quite comprehend what I just saw, a bunch of trainees who signed up to be actors, but are being trained to be idols instead, a lot of interpersonal drama, around five couples, a sabotage plot.. I haven't even covered half the things in the series.

Every storyline was started up, had minimal movement and didn't conclude. So many characters disappear for episodes on end and pop back up like nothing ever happened, but even then it was completely filled because there are 20+ characters who all have around the same screentime.

There was no investment in anything as far as I was concerned, from my side as well as theirs. The only couple I actually cared about didn't have much going on, and like all the other characters, had nothing going on as individuals. There was no distinction between who they wanted us to like and who they didn't, because not one of them had the depth to give us something to care about. It's all a blur in my mind, plots come and go, characters come and go and no one seems to bother.

Finally, let's talk about that finale-
Wow. I have never seen a worse one. I've seen shows worse than this, but even there, the finale was something that served as a tie up. This did nothing of the sort. Not one single arc was concluded. Not a single one.
They also chose the last episode to try and talk about something important and serious, and didn't. It was concluded in a horrible manner, might I add.
Everything was left up in the air, and I was left with my hands up in the air in frustration.

So save yourself the torment, this isn't it.

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Give it a try

This review is a LONG time coming because I watched the show months ago, but I couldn't think of what to put in my review once I finished it. I thought giving it some time would help and then I promptly forgot to actually do it.

Since High Street (sequel to Senior High) just started airing, I decided to write it now.
Here's the review:

⚠️ CONTENT WARNINGS ⚠️
The show contains depictions of bullying, violence, SA, murder and much more. I found it pertinent to include this because the depictions are rather explicit, and caution may be exercised before watching.

I started watching this because I came across some clips on YouTube, but I decided I wasn't going to watch an 50 episodes (100+ with both seasons) just to catch a glimpse of two people who may or may not become a couple. I decided the clips were enough until I realised that I didn't really have the complete context of the story, plot wise or romance wise, since both seemed to be integral for my understanding.

I then caved and started watching it, deciding that if I didn't like it, I could just stop. And would you know it, I couldn't stop. The show is dramatic, a little cringey, and downright impossible at times (most of the time), but it keeps you invested.
It's the kind of series where the kids have more common sense, compassion and just plain humanity compared to the adults. It's more dramatic than it needs to be and that's probably what worked.

The story follows Sky Love Cruz, a recent transferee to Northford High, the school which her twin Luna Amore Cruz attends. Not long after, Luna dies of an apparent suicide, but Sky thinks otherwise and decides to investigate. As she rules out suspects and gains allies, she discovers the deep, dark secrets of the school and the people in it.

Without giving away much about the plot (which I won't either way because it's far more complicated than one would expect) the story manages to keep you on your toes the entire time. Yes, the scenes are drawn out, yes plot points could have been concluded much faster than they actually did, but there is a high chance that you'll be invested either way. It very much reminded me of the soap operas we get on television where I live, and maybe the familiarity made me like it a bit more.

Now, I will admit that both seasons have sort of become one in my mind because I watched them at a stretch, but I do vaguely remember where they made the cut, and season 1 provided quite the setup for an even more dramatic, over the top and traumatic viewing.

Give it a try and see if you like it. If I'm being completely objective, this is not everyone's cup of coffee, maybe even not mine but be what it may, it surprised me and maybe it'll surprise you as well.

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What Did YOU Eat Yesterday?

Every once in a while, when the drama and conflicts feel too much, when you find the need to watch something that feels like a warm embrace, when you want to watch people navigate real issues with grace and sensitivity, I hope you'll think about this series.

I'll keep this short and sweet. Watching two people in love, handling their lives in the best possible manner makes you incredibly happy. Watching them influence the lives of those around them and get influenced by the very same people, watching them grow and evolve as they solve problems big and small, issues important and relevant, all while maintaining the healthiest of relationships is something admirable.

So I'll just say this. If you ever find yourself searching for a drama where every scene feels like a conversation you can witness in real life, where food plays an important role, whether it's to discuss issues or bring people together, or simply satisfy your craving, where you may get the sense that you're somehow part of this huge family, where it's just genuine happiness on screen, I hope you'll think about this series.

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Friends Forever

What could have been huh? There's no telling though because absolutely nothing happened in the two episodes. It took an episode and a half for the contents of the synopsis to take place, leaving no room for anything else to happen.

What followed was a whole lot of flashbacks, which would've been understandable if this was a long format series with a lot of twists and turns and actual intrigue and suspense about who the murderer is. Unfortunately, since everything is incredibly obvious, the flashbacks play no role. It would have at least made sense if they were just showed once, but one scene was shown as a flashback multiple times, and this applied for several scenes.

It's a shame though, because there was absolutely no story beyond the synopsis, no proper genre you could think it is, and not even a proper conclusion to what could have been a solid miniseries.

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Confusing, from beginning to end

This has got to be one of the most confusing miniseries' I've ever watched, because you can see what they tried to say with the story and at the same time, you can't. I have so many doubts about episode 1 but I can't remember them because they've been replaced by equally confusing doubts about episode 2!

The actual premise they wanted to execute is quite interesting, ghost of the lead's ex - boyfriend takes over the body of someone the lead detests, but ex - boyfriend can't let anyone know it's him in the body of the casanova, simple enough. They screwed up the execution though, and boy how! The thoughts and actions of the characters rarely line together, the dialogue and narration is so messy that it's impossible to distinguish between the flashbacks and the present, and there are so many plot holes. More often than not, it's like the ex - boyfriend cannot remember that he mustn't reveal his identity because he's dropping clues everywhere. There's a weird love square between the lead, the ex - boyfriend, the casanova and the lead's sister, I mean, you have to see it to believe it.

You can tell what they wanted to do though, they wanted to create something sad and angsty, but with the runtime and the way they bungled the story, there's only so much they can present. Interesting premise that just faltered.

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I promised myself that I wouldn’t write a review for this series, but here we are. This review is not one of personal opinion, but rather completely objective.

What makes a series good? A cast who can genuinely act, or a production house that knows it’s way around, or a story worth sticking with? Unfortunately, Amore seems to possess just one. Acting can only carry a series up to a particular point, after which the audience needs something more to stay with the series through it’s run. Be it whether there are sound glitches, an everlasting story that seems to be headed nowhere or the introduction of controversial actors, Amore has it’s fair share of problems, but what is the factor that this series contains that continually keeps the viewers interested?

The answer to that would seem to be the acting. The chemistry between the characters, especially Wil and Joey is off the charts right now and these characters seem genuine, which resonates with many an audience. The cast only seems to improve every single episode and that’s an amazing thing, but it’s not enough. As I mentioned before, just good acting is not the saviour. This was marketed as a love story between Jimmy and Joey, and that was honestly the reason I started this series, but as the episodes pass, I feel myself getting tired of the ongoing storyline. With the absolute absence of romance between the leads as of now, lack of consent, the love interests that keep hounding the lead, this drama seems to be heading down hill.

What’s still keeping you and I here though? That I don’t know the answer to. Maybe it’s hope that it will get better, or maybe you are genuinely interested in the show. Be what it may, by my standards this is mediocre. I sit here with the hope that it will get better and if it does, maybe this review will end on a positive note.

EDIT AFTER EPISODE 25
So..... it did not get better. Yes the acting is absolutely consistent, and my complaint that the story seems to be going nowhere is quenched, but god, when did the story get this bad. For a while, it genuinely looked like the story was going to get better than before, but it somehow took a turn for the worse.

Long drawn out dialogues, unnecessarily written scenes that seem to have no ultimate connection to the final outcome of the story, the writing out of several main characters and the incredibly annoying behaviour of some characters are just unbearable at this point.

Once again, good acting can only get you to one point, you need way more than just acting to make a series enjoyable. Be it a very popular series, a much anticipated sequel or a series with not much to go for, we look for elements that make it enjoyable to the self and have come to expect a certain level of quality, which Amore seems to lack. A certain panache, if you will. Yes, the leads finally got together, in the 25th episode. The baby,.... well something happened to the baby and I don’t want to spoil it more than I already have.

With the news out that the director was fired from the company, the fate of the series hangs in the air. Will it be continued, or concluded on that slightly positive note remains to be seen.

EDIT AFTER THE FINALE
What in the actual f*** was that!!!! True Love is Sacrifice!!!! I mean seriously.... what was that???
Like they got together in episode 25, they were happy in episode 26, then comes episode 27 and bam! Jimmy goes off to become a priest!?! Like whyyy??? I’m so pissed right now.

Even without the horrible ending, the series has nothing to brag about. The premise seemed extremely interesting and it seemed like it was going to be a light hearted rom - com type series, but they just had to go the dramatic route. Sometimes the really predictable story is leagues better, and maybe with a better script and a slightly higher budget, this would have been a good, a great series even, but now, it has literally ended on nothing.

As I’ve already mentioned, it started out well, fizzled out somewhere in between and finally went out without a bang. Some dramas work, this didn’t.

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So this series was not initially available where I live, but after I started watching it, I could not stop!
This series is EVERYTHING!
Now this series uses the engineer trope very well, but it isn’t nothing I’ve not seen before, that’s my only complaint about this series.

THE STORY:
The story is good. Duen has to buy flowers for Bohn every morning for a month. The story starts from here and evolves into the relationship of four total couples - Bohn/Duen, Ram/King, Boss/Mek, and Thara/Frong(Yim). The rest of the season is the evolution of their relationships.

THE ACTING:
I’m very pleased with the acting in the series. Each character is well written and actually have substance unlike some other series’ I’ve watched. Sometimes the actors can be uncomfortable with their roles, and they were decidedly so at some points in the series, they managed to make up for it very well. This may be the first series for several of these actors, but credit where credit is due.

THE PRODUCTION :
Very good production. One thing I’ve already mentioned is the engineering trope which is overused according to me, but other than that I’ve got no problem with this production team.

THE OST:
I love the OST’s of several other series’ as well, but this one hits different man! I love the OST and the lyrics of the OST. It’s just so beautiful.

SPOILERS:
I’m going to give only one spoiler. The first kiss is between... Mek and Boss!( Agghhhh!)

THE NEGATIVE:
There’s only one negative and that is the relationship between the leads. While very cute, it’s also a bit toxic. Bohn is prone to fits of jealousy and the episode about the “husband and wife” in the relationship was just unnecessary. Though it is quite usual for jealousy in a relationship, Bohn’s knocks on an unacceptable level. Also the fact that apparently Ryan won’t be returning for season 2 is just disappointing. Just have to see what happens to Mek and Boss.

THE ENDING:
So as previously announced, the series ended on an open note. Bohn and Duen make their relationship official and so do Mek and Boss. Ram King share a kiss, but King decides to not talk about it. Thara and Frong have these moments with Thara finding Frong’s necklace and all, but their arc ends with Thara describing his relationship with Frong as that of a senior and junior. I was ready to be disappointed with the final episode but I was mildly impressed. As for the sad ending Lay was talking about, my best guess is it’s Thara Frong. This was an open ending so for closure, we’ve all just got to wait for season 2.

Overall this series is quite amazing and I would urge you all to give it a try. Thank You!

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Cosmetics and Crushes

What a surprisingly wonderful series this turned out to be!

The story follows Natsume and Sahashi, who work for a cosmetics company as BAs (beauty assistants), and bring in considerable sales to their branch on account of talent and charisma. Starting off as senior and junior, Natsume immediately recognises Sahashi's potential and takes it upon himself to mentor him as best as he can, but Sahashi finds Natsume meddlesome.
They eventually have a run in with each other after certain events transpire at the store, but that is the catalyst that kickstarts their relationship. When Natsume accuses Sahashi of never taking anything seriously, Sahashi instead proclaims that Natsume will be the thing he takes seriously henceforth.

Their relationship was actually fast forwarded enough for me to be confused about when it even started, but once they started, it continued on incredibly. They brought out the best in each other, constantly challenged each other, grew as individuals and made each other more vulnerable and approachable.
Although it was frustrating to see Natsume get into his head as often as he did (almost every episode), they eventually communicated much better than I expected them to. It wasn't really a compromise that is usually done to move past an argument, but an honest conversation involving them both.

I also loved that they showed professional growth right alongside personal and romantic growth. Seeing them get better at their jobs, gaining more opportunities and experience had me grinning. And the fact that they integrated their relationship into this narrative without it feeling forced or taking away too much attention from their strengths as a couple was great.
They also had several supporting characters along the way help them out with their connection, establishing it as something stronger than it would seem on the surface level. I especially need a spin off of Nanjo, the man was an enigmatic presence who needed more screentime.

This was a very enjoyable short series with a good story, acting and cinematography that I'd recommend.

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Could have been better

The fact that every apocalypse/disaster series seems more and more similar to one previous is nothing new, it may as well be one of the reasons I'm quickly losing interest in the genre.

Surprisingly enough, they managed to keep it fresh while still maintaining the same formula. They accomplished this by incorporating small details, establishing the story and workings early on, and focusing on the subsequent aftermath.

But even subverting the usual "everything is going to hell" trope, the story is bogged down by clichés you would usually witness in the genre, from the act first, think later characteristic that runs amok amongst all the characters, to the one - dimensional characterisation. There's the usual "who's the real villain?", and the darkness of human nature, everything you would usually see in the genre.

What seemed to be innovative started to take the usual, cliched route the minute it hit the halfway mark and just like that I began losing what little interest I had.

I put this on my list for Koo Kyo Hwan but also because despite my recent disinterest in the genre, I wanted to give the drama a try, and while I can't say I'm dissapointed, I can't say I'm impressed either. The short duration meant a perfect binge watch, but ultimately I didn't rate it as high as I thought I would after the first couple of episodes.

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