A fun, stylish drama with quirky, lovable characters!

I enjoyed this drama a lot more than I expected to. While I found the actual plotlines sloppily executed (more on that below), it had wonderful characters, great chemistry between the entire cast, well-choreographed fights, and cool art direction. It had an almost retro, anime-ish style in the costuming and action scenes, but it felt fresh and fun rather than silly and over the top.

Story: It had me entertained the entire way through, though some arcs were better than others. My one beef is that it tried too hard to be smart for its own good. Plot twists, misdirection, and unreliable narrators can be great storytelling tools, but used too much, and you're going to stop feeling invested. This definitely happened to me here. It got to where any time something supposedly shocking happened, instead of feeling actual shock I was impatiently waiting for the 'gotcha' moment because I knew it was coming. I thought the last arc was the strongest, as it focused more on the characters we'd grown to know and love, and the plotting felt tighter. Until the actual ending. That cliffhanger just seemed really unnecessary and tacked on. Fortunately, as of me writing this, filming of the second season has begun.

Acting/Cast: Where this drama really shines is in the characters. They were fantastically written, the casting was perfect, I loved the visually distinct styling and costumes, and the acting was great. Even the side characters that came and went were enjoyable and I got attached to them. The character development and evolution of their relationships felt natural and satisfying. I especially adored our main couple. The male lead was a clever, mischievous trickster who could fight but preferred to use words and cunning to get out of (or into) trouble. The female lead was a badass - cool, confident, ambitious, principled, an awesome fighter - and best of all, she stayed strong up to the end. No sudden incompetency for the sake of making her the damsel in distress, which was really refreshing! As for the romance - their chemistry was good and I liked how it developed, but it did rely on too many clichés (which it sort of tried to subvert - I think? - but badly) and the kisses were pretty weak. Frankly, it felt a bit forced, which is unfortunate because I really did love the pairing a lot.

Music: Probably fine - I don't remember being annoyed by it?

This could've been a 10 out of 10 if the the writing was tighter, the editing less choppy, and the romance better executed. Still, it was a fun watch - visually pleasing and I got very attached to the lovely cast of offbeat characters. Very much looking forward to season 2!

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The best horror-themed drama I've watched

First off, let me say I'm a big horror buff. Mention a horror film title, there's a 90% chance I've seen it. I rarely find them scary anymore. As for horror type K-dramas? I've yet to find one even remotely scary. The Guest was the only one I found at least unsettling. While the actual 'ghosts' weren't really frightening, the cinematography, sound design, and scenery created this gritty, off-kilter feel I really enjoyed. Fair warning: it's a pretty dark watch, and doesn't shy away from gore/violence/death.

Story: I found the plot of this one really cool. It was smart and kept me guessing. I liked how it blended elements of traditional shamanism and Catholicism. There's a bit of a demon-of-the-week format as our trio track down the Big Bad, but I found each mini-story compelling and tied nicely to the main plot. The pacing is great, and the slow-but-steady reveals kept the mystery from dragging. Knocked a point off because the 'climax' and final exposition scene could've been handled better, and some of the conflicts felt a bit repetitive. The actual end was satisfying however, though I've read criticisms that it left too much unanswered. I was fine with it.

Acting/Cast: Perfection! From our incredible main trio, to the memorable side characters, to the portrayals of the possessed, the performances in this drama absolutely made this drama. Yes, our three heroes are incredibly flawed people, and I could see why some might find them frustrating. But I thought the show did a good job of explaining why they were that way, and it made their character and relationship development more realistic and satisfying. The only reason I didn't give it a 10 is because I found the human antagonist too over the top - she tended to come across as cartoonish rather than the sinister vibe I think they were going for.

I rarely give 10s, but I'm giving one here, despite the show's missteps, because I thoroughly enjoyed it beginning to end. It drew me into the world and made me care about almost every character. And the art direction was fantastic. Recommended if you're looking for something dark and a bit different.

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WOW!

It's hard to know where to start with this one. I went in with low expectations, as I have no interest in e-sports, and dropped the one other C-drama that featured them after 2 episodes. I'll avoid spoilers in this review, except in my notes at the end (and I'll try to be vague there as well).

It turned out to be one of my top all-time dramas, and the few I'd rate a 10 with zero hesitation.

General impressions: Poignant, emotionally satisfying (by turns hilarious, then had me on the edge of my seat, then in tears), fantastic characters with believable growth, an intriguing mystery... Also loved the gritty, indie-film vibe in the past storyline, especially in contrast with the slicker production in the present scenes. In general, the art direction really impressed me in this. Best bromance ever! And while the romances were a very small slice of the story, they were really well done. Features what might be the most intense kiss scene I've ever seen in a C-drama or K-drama. Like, I think the actors forgot they were on camera. Or that they were supposed to be acting.

Story: Again, e-sports isn't something I care about or follow, but I thought it was incorporated well. It was mostly a vehicle to move the characters forward, and many of the in-game scenes were shot in live-action which made the matches fun to watch. Features some fantastic action choreography - some of the best I've seen. As for the sci-fi - I know some viewers complained that it didn't make sense, but I didn't mind. I just took it as a plot device to connect the timelines and the two leads, and I was good with that. The big focus of this drama is the development of the characters and their relationships - be it as friends/teammates/family/romantic partners/rivals and so on. And it did that incredibly well. I cannot say enough about how amazing these characters were. There were lovable, layered, flawed, and whether they experienced growth or lost their way I was invested in their individual stories completely.

Acting/Cast: The casting and performances in this were top-notch. I went in as a Wu Lei fan, and while I loved him as Lu Xiao Bei, my favorite character wound up being Lu Han's Xiao Feng. But all the actors in this did an impressive job, and their on-screen chemistry was fantastic.

Music: It was alright. Not to my taste, but it served the scenes well enough.

The not-so-good (but not bad enough to take my 10 rating back - MILD SPOILERS AHEAD):

I will say there were some missteps, though they didn't take away from my overall enjoyment.

While for the most part the drama excelled at making simple, true-to-life scenes feel really impactful, occasionally it went overboard with the sentimentality and felt forced. The whole 'virtual reality' thing later on was weird and didn't fit with the rules the world had established. Also, while I respected An Lan for choosing the life path she did (as she was unhappy when we met her and found her passion in an unexpected place), I felt like Che Gu gave up her dream to help Xiao Bei achieve his, and that didn't sit right. And finally, the last couple episodes were the weakest. Obviously the tournament was what all that hard work was leading up to, but I found the matches overly long and kind of tedious.

Also, this might be a touchy subject, but I feel like I'd be remiss in not mentioning it. The heavy-handed Chinese nationalism at the end came on strong out of seemingly nowhere, and the other teams didn't actually look like they were from their respective countries, which added to the propaganda-ish weirdness of it all. Where the drama was so intimately focused on our group of underdogs until that point, it felt tacked on, and I wonder if getting the drama past censors had something to do with it? An odd choice by the writers if not.

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