Not just a Girls love story.

There are shows which need tons of episodes to tell a story and then there are shows which need only minutes. This one falls in the latter category.
There are LGBTQ shows mostly BLs where we have guys falling for eachother more precisely being 'gay for you' with rainbows in the background, sun and stars shining bright, shippers in the show barfing confetti and darn near entire world (barring the proverbial evil 'female gender' being villanious) playing cheerleaders.
Then there are shows where everything is dark, gloomy, depressing, hopeless and yes .. just bury your gays coz that's how it rolls.
In between the two extremes there is this lovely little masterpiece which tells a sweet story without erasing the sadness and hopeless that the community faces. Yet gives out one of the most powerful emotion of the human world.
Hope!
Yes.. life sucks but here is hoping to a happy life.
And the most poignant message that we need to tattoo in our lives.. Yeah maybe world will not accept me... But I am going to accept myself. I choose to be Me.
The story is too short but i thought that is the whole charm of it. The actresses are lovely to look at. And did a great job in bringing the characters alive. Especially Min Seo. She expresses so much with just her face that dialogues become redundant. The pain seeps through the smiles. Tremendous acting.
The chemistry is adorable.
And the skinship.. toecurling.
Story.. Melts you heart, then breaks it and then makes it whole again and let it soar.
Special mention to the friend. She is one wonderful character.
This is not just a girls love story. This is a story of choosing to be who you are and choosing to be with the one who will let you be. That is.. a human who should live and love the way others do. Freely!

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Almost there!

Almost There!!! That's just about sums up the show for me. You see something great or something terrible or something terrifying or something that will blow your mind.. almost. But it just falls short of reaching there. Maybe that's because this show ends up as a prequel of actual story that is yet to be told. I i hope to hell that story actually gets told for it looks and sounds amazing if this show is anything to go by.
So a bunch of students are stranded in the island and their lives and all the ugliness that accompanies it and all the awesomeness that shall come forth forms the base of the story. Characters especially supporting ones are very interesting. Standout characters are Arisa and Nahm for they are the only two characters who sense the strangeness of the situation and actively seek the answers. Lead characters especially Kraam lets the situation drags them along. Kraam despite being the centre to all that is happening in the island and literally the central character to the story is just.. passive. The side and supporting characters pull their weights to solve the mysteries. Which doesn't really get solved by the way just gets more weirder and gets you all curious and curiouser.
Here is hoping to season 2 to give us Kraam as the hero that he is meant to be.
Rest all the characters are interesting and engaging in varying degrees. Some evoke disgust; some interest and some tons of liking.
And then there is PerthMark. Individually both are terrific actors. Together they looked great. Their story was haunting. But and this is a big but... Their story didn't really blend into the stranded world. Nat and Gun .. the side characters having their own story would have created more impact and added value to the story than KritJack who can be erased from the story without any dent in flow at all. Having them in the show is like serving wine in beer fest. As a standalone story great but feels like shoehorned into the stranded world.
High production value being Netflix. Cinematography is stunning. And the note where the story pauses is a knock out punch. It is sheer cruelty to have a season culture for shows and stories like this Netflix.
So here is to hoping for a season 2 which will get us from 'Almost there' to ' Yeah! here we are!' stage coz this story truly has that potential to be awesomeness.

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A criminally underrated show.

What a criminally underrated show!! But then again you call it 'Fermentation family' then can't expect people to trip over themselves in excitement to try it right? Sigh! Like seriously.. who thought it that it would be jolly idea to go for this uninspiring bleh name over other selected ones? You are fired if you aren't already.
Rant over.
Now about the show..
What a beautiful beautiful show. Everytime i think about this show.. i end up smiling. In a happy, serene, nostalgic sepia tone. What is good about this show?
Everything. And yes I am biased. Anyone wants to criticize any aspect of this show i will shove my fingers in my ears and go 'lalala..'. As far i am concerned this is one lovely show despite any and every legit or unfair criticism.
What starts off as story of a runaway gangster searching for his roots and a city chef forced to take over family restaurant in a village this show becomes all that life is. Beautiful with all its flaws and faultlines. The characters are so endearing. Special mention to the sweet naive sister. And then there are those hilarious gangster bunch.
Yeah the birth secret, mystery factors are jarring in the otherwise a serene storyline but i totally can look over the jarring notes for the soothing notes are so lovely.
The actors did a great job including the supporting and even cameos.
Every episode starts with the making of the kimchi of the day. Even kimchi is a life lesson. To think of it .. every ingredient has a story to tell. The cinematography is SO beautiful. My personal favourite is lotus kimchi. It looked so pretty.
One life lesson that stayed with me.. Once they run out of cabbage kimchi. The sisters wonder how did they miss making such a basic one when they are so diligent in making other exotic variety. And then the lead girls muses.. May be because it has been such an integral part of the menu and our lives that we took it for granted. Just like we take our loved ones for granted because they are always there.
At times i did feel that the girls and other characters are just too good to be true. They are over kind. Over good. Just too good a people. But then again in the world gone bad a little too much of goodness doesn't hurt right.
Story of the show.. A guy searching for his roots and joining the restaurant for there in lies the key to his past life. And how he finds happiness.
A girl going back to her roots and finding herself and her happiness.
A father's journey.
A sister and her sweet outlook of seeing only all that is beautiful in the world. She is such a pure character that concept of 'ugliness' is beyond her comprehension.
A lost tormented guy finding peace.
And many a characters finding what they are seeking. Shelter, home, food, love.
For me this show is like watching serene rain smattering at your window panes while you are curled up in your favourite blanket with a cup of coffee that you love and gazing out with a serene smile.
I guess I have gone too poetic so i will end it here.

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Pretty but Pointless.

Not that I look for Booker prize worth story, Oscar worthy acting and the paraphernalia in a drama, least of all a BL show (Many BLs have basic plotlines barring few glorious exceptions) ..But! This drama feels beyond pointless.

The Good:
Ost. (Pretty catchy).
Camera shots. (Beautiful)
Visuals of the actors. (Quite engaging for Optical system.)
Food. (Oh the Divinity!)

The Bad:
Story if they have any. The whole of 7 episodes (that I managed to finish) could have been condensed in less than two.
Chemistry. (Soda left out for a week must have more fizz.)
Etc. (Don't want to be too mean.)

The Ugly:
The staring. (Are we participating in 'who blinks first' contest? If yes.. We have a Winnah!)
The pauses. (One can take a powernap at those prolonged pauses.)
Etc.

Mark is a decent to good actor, going by his earlier projects. But here his Aek must be on trance substance high, for nothing else explains the actions, expressions and dialogue delivery of that character. Ofcourse everything else is slow in the show but this particular character takes it beyond the natural and unnatural slowness.
Aue actor serves looks and acting. Few other characters and actors are interesting but story as a whole is like slow walking on a broken treadmill. I don't mind slow burn but not when the fire is being set up in caveman era style on a wet grass at that.
Or maybe this show can be an excellent aid for breathing exercises. Time yourself at the 'pauses' and the 'staring'. On second thoughts 'Don't'. One might pass out due to sheer oxygen overload.

Don't mean to dissuade anyone from giving this show a try. The show has some goods as opposed to only bads. You might find the pace and the rest calming and enjoyable. I didn't.
A compulsive completist. - But have to drop. Best luck to the cast for better project next time.

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