A hidden gem

i don’t usually write reviews for ongoing dramas but i simply had to write one for this drama because i didn’t expect to love it as much as i do! this drama came on my netflix recommended and i thought i’d give it a shot and i’m so glad that i did.

when i watched the first episode of mad for each other i will admit that it didn’t convince me. but as i continued watching i ended up falling in love with the characters and the message the drama conveys beneath its scenes and characters. this drama is about more than comedy. this drama is about healing and discovering someone to lean on after having endured hardships and painful memories. hwi oh and min kyung both have had painful experiences and their struggles are relatable; i love how the drama portrays their characters. people struggle everyday with feeling anger, experiencing anxiety and misfortune comes into life in the most unexpected forms but it still happens. the mental health representation of this drama is truly amazing, i love that it isn’t presented as a taboo subject ( ex: the leads express their problems normally to their therapist and it isn’t expressed or perceived in a negative light ) and i feel it’s a very important subject that needs to be talked about more especially in tv shows so i sincerely applaud the writers for executing and representing their characters well and talking about subjects most people tend to not speak up about.

i’m absolutely charmed by the development between hwi oh and min kyung. i love their scenes and i’ve laughed and smiled like an idiot several times by how adorable they can be. the comedy in this drama is on point ( ex: when both hwi oh and min kyung were talking to their therapist about each other and hwi oh mentioned the “pet” since min kyung’s name sounds similar to her dog’s name and the therapist got confused but in reality hwi oh meant min kyung LOL ), and the scene where hwi oh taught her to fight truly had me cracking up from how chaotic they are together, the dialogues always have me rolling; watching the leads slowly fall for each other, and, in the process, understand one another is such a beautiful thing to witness. the development has been natural and i love that hwi oh has become someone min kyung can rely on. it’s wholesome that min kyung has found friendships in the locals of the neighborhood and that she’s being supported by hwi oh as well because gosh, min kyung most certainly deserves better after all the crap that life has thrown at her. i’m rooting for min kyung and hwi oh to both have happy endings!

i’m only 8 episodes into the drama but i already know for a fact that it’s an absolute favorite and it’s a gem that i wish more people would talk about. i’m a little sad that the drama is short at only 13 episodes, 30 minutes each but, to be honest i wouldn’t have minded if the drama were 16 episodes or more. but i suppose it’s better it’s short as dramas tend to drag the longer they are. this drama is truly one of a kind, a hidden gem that deserves much more attention! i look forward to seeing how the drama ends ( … really hoping for a happy ending ), and i am so glad i watched this masterpiece. i’m impressed with the acting as well, it’s superb! a wonderful performance from oh yeon seo and jung woo, i congratulate them for their incredible work — for me it’s already a ten!

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A truly beautiful drama

this is my first review and i will start it off by saying this: this drama is a work of art. i started it with high expectations: a detective atoning for his serial killer’s father’s sins and an aspiring actress whose dark past follows behind her. their love story transcends over a decade, fate bringing them apart. and i was not disappointed at all with this masterpiece.

yoon na mu has faced pain the entirety of his life, being seen only as the son of a serial killer by everyone. despite the darkness of his past he maintains a pure heart, wanting to live well and serving the community as a detective. his character was written well and the development was noticeable especially after he met nak won; he was willing to risk everything, even standing up to his psychopathic father, to protect nak won. i found it so moving that despite the years that had passed by, na mu’s heart stayed with nak won. it made me feel emotional seeing him long for her so fervently, especially when he was having a hard time.

jang ki yong’s acting truly took my breath away in this drama; the way he spoke sadness through his eyes and looked utterly broken by guilt every time he gazed at nak won was enough to make me cry and share his pain with him. i only recently became a fan of jang ki yong’s works and without a doubt, JKY is a remarkable actor and his acting was truly an incredible addition to the drama. he acts so naturally and you can feel the emotions he portrays, hence why i believe he’s one of the most gifted actors in the kdrama industry.

overall, the plot was interesting and i was always on the edge of my seat wondering what would happen next, especially when nak won and na mu would encounter each other once again. the crime plot was a bit slow at times but still delivered a satisfying twist factor that was enough to continue on to the next episode. i loved seeing the love between the leads only blossom more beautifully as the story progressed, their love never dying out despite the world saying their love was strange and ugly. if you’re looking for a romance with hints of melo and no difficult obstacles restricting their relationship, this is the drama to watch. a wonderful performance by JKY and JKJ!

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Much too dragged out

i rarely see xianxia dramas but this particular xianxia caught my eye by the promotional posters and promising plot and i began this drama with high expectations, but ultimately — it was a disappointment.

the beginning of this drama started out well and i actually quite enjoyed it. liuying took care of the dragon king when he was injured and seeing him slowly fall in love with her sweet, gentle and innocent aura was nice to watch but after conflicts arose and he was cursed to watch her forget him and die for four lifetimes is when the drama, for me, began to lose its limerance. the FL is reborn again and the plot began to feel rushed everytime dragon king and FL met each other — the romance was much too fast paced and at times some scenes were boring as nothing exciting happened between the leads ( i found myself fast forwarding on many occasions ). if anything, it was just a repeat of dragon king’s first encounter with liuying such as the roasted chestnuts, watching fireworks, or going into the cherry blossom forest. the four lifetimes plot was insanely dragged out and i was quite shocked by that as i felt the plot had potential but the writers could’ve done more with the plot than simply making the FL get saved by the DK each time they crossed each other’s paths. it didn’t help that the acting was also not as good at times, DW was at times a little too stoic & i thought that he should have expressed more sorrow at being separated from his love and more emotion put into his expressions of devotion and loyalty to her, but alas it seems he became too absorbed in the “rough and indestructible” dragon king role. i definitely feel a little more emotion would’ve made the drama more enjoyable.

what made me continue watching this drama was the second leads — they absolutely stole the show and were much more interesting than the leads. i enjoyed their scenes and i thought their chemistry was really good which made their scenes all the more enjoyable. if i had to choose, my most preferred lifetime of the FL would be her third lifetime when she was general feng chen yue; she was an empowered, strong lead that led an army and didn’t need to rely on someone to save her — she was her own leader and i found her storyline to be much more interesting as there was even a complot from the crown prince conspiring to kill her which made the third lifetime interesting to watch, especially when general feng defeated her antagonist. it was an added bonus that she didn’t need much help from the dragon king either — we love an independent queen.

overall, i wasn’t very impressed with this drama and i wanted to like it, but i could only find more fault than good things to criticize about this drama. i understand it was a low budget drama but it was a let down from the way they promoted the drama and made it look better than it was. the ending was also unsatisfactory which made my disappointment run even deeper. this xianxia is one the least memorable dramas for me and if you’re not a fan of dragged out, repititive romances then i would overlook this drama.

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Serotonin boost!

i’m a fluffy romance fanatic and this drama is the boost of serotonin i was looking for! moonlight is a rom-com that hit the nail in the head for me. i watched a few episodes and i was all-in, especially the lead couple and their portrayals. i only recently became familiar with ding yuxi’s works but his portrayal of zhou chuan in ML is by far my favorite work of his.

the relationship between the leads is adorable and it was nice to see the ML liking the FL first rather than it being the FL always crushing on the ML. their chemistry was really good and they had many swoon worthy scenes and to contrast, some bickering scenes that made me love them more; zhou chuan is childish but in a way that it only made his character more lovable ( i applaud yuxi’s amazing acting! ). the plot of this story is pretty generic IMO, showing everyday work in the publishing industry; chu li struggles in the beginning of the drama with her work being difficult. but it was so refreshing that chu li had a backbone and never allowed anyone to walk all over her; her determination to do her work proficiently was admirable and empowering. she’s not only reliable but she’s a lovable character that i sincerely grew fond of as the drama progressed. the bromance between zhou chuan and jiang yucheng was lovely and i enjoyed their moments of friendship ( it was hilarious how zhou chuan would get jealous everytime chu li praised jiang’s works and he’d want her attention to himself LOL ). one of my most favorite moments would have to be the way chu li handled the rumors that her BF was involved with another woman — she handled that amazingly and with such maturity it just boosted my respect for her. i simply love it when dramas promote healthy relationships!

overall this drama really exceeded my expectations as i am usually not a fan of dramas with a large amount of episodes as they tend to get dragged out; but this rom-com was entertaining to watch and a sweet fluffy delight; you get invested in the characters that you look forward to seeing what comes next! i can’t quite express wholely why i loved moonlight but it was a complete pleasure to watch, hands down one of my favorite dramas from 2021. i congratulate ding yuxi on yet another incredible project and to esther yu as well! one of the best modern cdramas i have ever seen <3

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A fantasy drama done right

i’m not a big fan of ghost themed dramas but WOW this drama took my breath away! my initial thoughts upon starting this drama is there’d be scary ghosts and violent scenes but this drama put a unique twist on the supernatural genre: hong ji ah a mysterious, strong enigma who owns daebak real estate, a company that specially sells haunted houses. her abilities to exorcise ghosts were awesome ( the way she’d remove that hairpin from her hair made her look so cool ) but she always holds a mysterious aura that simply pulled you in to her character and made you wonder just what weight does she carry on her shoulders. i love the fact that the ghosts ji ah encountered all had a backstory and gave some depth and meaning to the plotline, which leads us to our other lead: oh in bum, a conman that ji ah encounters. and guess what: in bum specializes in exorcism fraud. what a coincidence.

this drama was packed with action and never was there a dull moment, and the acting especially blew my mind — jang na ra was simply out of this world! she wore a stoic expression but upon meeting her gaze you could see the deeply buried pain that would briefly resurface; when she cried your heart would constrict with her just as much as it would soar upon seeing her have a moment of happiness. jang na ra’s acting was flawless, she fit the role of hong ji ah so well i can’t imagine anyone else playing the role. another thing i loved about this drama was the characters and their portrayals. as ji ah and in bum slowly got to know each other you could see they had developed romantic feelings but nothing needed to be said: they had each other’s backs and i love the maturity they both had ( ex: when ji ah found out her mother’s death was connected to in bum’s uncle’s death and she lashed out at IB, she swallowed her pride and apologized to him, showing her maturity and that she truly cared for in bum ). they worked amazingly together as exorcist and psychic, especially their fight scenes! there was no actual romance but the drama was okay without it, the characters were still enjoyable.

the recurring antagonist, do kak sung, is one that certainly infuriated me with his horrid crimes and manipulative tendencies — the actor did will on his role as I found myself hating DKS more and more as the drama progressed. he played a large role in the deaths of many characters, IB’s uncle as well, and DKS is a prime example that when allowed, greed can poison a person’s heart and lead them to do despicable things; till the end our gang dealt with him and his evil, the ending showing DKS getting sealed away eternally — the villain getting defeated and the characters finally being able to move on well, a satisfying ending in my book. overall this drama was paced well, i found it difficult for me to say goodbye to this drama; i’ll miss the characters greatly, i enjoyed every episode thoroughly, a 16 hours well spent in my eyes. if you’re looking for a good supernatural / ghost themed plot with a steady storyline and no-filler episodes i 100% recommend this drama! congratulations to the actors + directors / producers that helped in creating a truly amazing drama and, in my opinion, one of the best 2021 dramas.

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Simply brilliant, a forever favorite

when thriller / mystery dramas are done well, they leave an impact on you and man, did this drama break and fulfill me at the same time. i’ve seen many thriller movies and shows but FOE truly left a mark on my heart from how brilliant this drama is — i was hooked from the start and above all what transcended the most: a couple whose love would get tested and that showed the true meaning of loving someone and believing in them even when everything else tells you not to. hyun soo is loving, gentle, and kind to his beloved wife but in reality he’s haunted by a dark past — being the son of a serial killer and a psychopath that struggled with being rejected from society, thus leaving him scarred emotionally. yet he is innocent of the crimes pegged against him and forced to clear his name from a crime that would lead to his own wife investigating him; events that were seemingly impossible and devastating that it left me wanting to know how ji won would handle the fact that her husband was connected to the case she was handling and her choice in trusting in her husband is simply incredible. seeing ji won as a skilled, badass detective that is passionate about her work and an empowered woman that knew how to let people know she meant business without walking all over them was awesome — once again applauding MCW’s bomb acting skills!

i applaud the casting because lee joong ki and moon chae won’s chemistry as a married couple was impeccable. their romantic scenes made my heart skip a beat and i’d laugh and cry with them. i’d say one of their most meaningful scenes is when hyun soo denied ji won’s love, saying he’s incapable of loving her and her only response was “you love me. i can feel it”. that scene upon from others simply made me fall in love with them as characters from the mix of angst and love from our leads — and the acting from both LJK and MCW was astoundingly wonderful; LJK especially left me mind blown by his ability to make one feel for his character hyun soo especially his facial expressions — it was also impressive to see him completely switch his demeanor from the loving husband to a sinister man with that dark look in his eyes. his character truly had me pondering if he was good or bad at times and just when i thought i had figured him out, a twist would suddenly yet again leave me in the dark. it was quite a ride following the characters as they attempted relentlessly to uncover the true culprit, the thriller aspect shining through brilliantly. lee joong ki simply smashed his role and i will forever remember his acting in this drama as one of the best performances i’ve ever seen.

the plot in this drama stayed consistent and always left me wanting more, rushing to watch the next episode because of how captivated i was. the music that set the eerie, mysterious vibe only enhanced the scenes and truly made the scenes enjoyable — especially the villain’s subplot. baek heesong is a bone chilling villain that would make shivers go down my spine from the creepy facial expressions to when he mercilessly killed his maid — the actor did a great job in portraying his character, especially when he was dangling from the cliff, his psychopathy showing and the darkness that lived inside him resurfacing even in his last moment of life. the aesthetics and lack of plot holes made the drama all the more enjoyable and it is a true gem that deserved the high praise it received. some viewers i noticed were unsatisfied with the ending but i personally thought the drama ended well on an open ending, hyun soo may not remember ji won completely but he could properly love her and be happy with her and their daughter. the writer did an incredible job in execution and i applaud the impeccable raw talent by the actors; this is one of the best dramas i’ve ever seen and i highly recommend it to all thriller lovers out there!

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