My Personal Best K-Cop Drama

I’m probably biased because I love cop dramas but this has been the best I’ve watched so far. I’m saying this after having watched Signal and a few others.

I don’t know how this show just gets me hooked and gripped each episode which makes it so binge-worthy. I like how each crime has a deeper story which unravels by the middle of the episode. Mid-season, you see this all start to connect to the wider and main plot/villain of the drama.

I love the FL. I like her calm and serious demeanour, and I am an instant fan.

Now, shall we talk about the villain? He’s probably the actual star of the show. He plays the psychotic role so, so well it gives off Christian Bale American Psycho vibes. He’s so scary that his gaze gives me chills each time. Really talented.

The only waste is probably the villain’s end. It was too easy and not explained properly.
But everything else were really good. Gruesome good.

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IU saves the show

I tried to like this unfortunately I fast-forwarded most of the episodes, especially after 11 or so.

I watched this because of IU and she did not disappoint. Her visuals plus the visuals of the drama itself is 200%. Her outfit changes were GREAT. Her acting is superb too with a lot of cold yet funny lines and moments. Part of the bg music makes it even funnier. However her chemistry with the ML was lacking.

The side characters were likeable, but not great. I did like their backstories. Mago is probably my favourite.

The ghosts had meh stories and endings. I sometimes expected more but each episode fell rather flat with how the ghosts were handled.

the FL's main story was good, but took too long to be explained. There was a huge gap in the middle where they were focusing on the side characters.

Overall, a 7/10 for me simply because of the stunning visuals.

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MDL Reviews are right

I really tried with this one but …. no. Just no.
Seems like most of our fellow reviewers here has mentioned at which point they dropped the show. Mine was at episode 11.

I’m a big SHK fan but her pretty face couldn’t save this one. At least with Encounter, I made it til the end.

The storyline is WEAK. It’s post 2020 and we’re still doing this level of misunderstandings and conflicts?
Then, the ML looks like a creepy stalker most of the time.
They kept saying that they were in love but—- why do I not feel it!? It felt more like lust than love to me. They had a ONS, then bumped into each other, and suddenly they’re in love? And the coincidences are just way too fairytale.

Sorry SHK, I really tried.

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Needs to be watched Twice to fully appreciate

Don’t go in expecting 11/10 and you will be fine.
That was my mistake which is why I will give it a 8.5/10.
*edit - rewatched and giving it a 9.5/10. I appreciate it more now but still not a 10.
Rewatching allows you to appreciate all the nuances and easter eggs. Worth the time.


Story & Plot:
It is a good revenge story with a pretty tight, and slightly unrealistic plot. The last 2 episodes were a little rushed too.
Unrealistic because she wouldn’t have been able to achieve her goal without her rich doctor boyfriend. Let’s be honest. Also, everything she does is not new. We can kinda predict.
I did like the buildup and how each episode ends with a cliffhanger that does not immediately get explained within the first minutes of the subsequent episode. You need to be patient and watch through their flashbacks.
For the good parts - she’s smart, she’s determined, she’s hardworking, and she knows her strategy.

Acting & Emotions:
This gripped me. Song Hye Kyo and Lee Do Hyun both made me cry with their acting. More of SHK. I love how calm she is facing the abusers (most of the time) but put her mom in front of her and she loses it.
The last episode attempted suicide scene was one of the more heart wrenching and unexpected scenes to me (also, unrealistic how she got saved). It just hits so hard.
SHK also carried a lot of emotional and challenging scenes by herself. Kudos to her.

Cast & Chemistry:
The Abusers are fun and hilarious to watch but they probably should stop screaming so much.

Dong Eun/Yeo Jung - they make a nice couple. The age gap was a little glaring to me but not a major issue or problem.

Dong Eun/Do Young - I ship them. It’s wrong, but I wholeheartedly ship her with this oppa. His gaze, my god.

Park Yeonjin - I want to rant that her bitter end was not harsh enough considering 16 episodes of buildup.

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Light and Sweet

Simple, light and sweet melodramatic romance.
I picked this show because of Song Hye Kyo and was not disappointed.

Not many complications and lame misunderstandings, thankfully. The FL and ML had a pretty strong love for each other. It would have been better if the show had say .. 4-6 episodes less as I felt things getting a little dragged out from ep 11 onwards.

I love the supporting characters. The driver, the secretary and even the ex-husband were all quite likeable. They made the show a lot stronger.

My only complain is the chemistry between the FL and ML. It wasn’t very sizzling and felt a little flat for me.

Overall a recommended watch if you want a light show. Minimal crying, I assure you.

Oh, and it’s a happy ending.

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100% FL/ML chemistry and worth the watch!

Came here without knowing who the cast were, never watched them before and super love them! The FL and ML pairing is so so good.

The show starts off slow and I honestly wanted to drop at episode 1 especially during the high school scene because I don’t see where this was going. Glad I held on til at least episode 3 and binge watched in 3 days.

The zombies are not as crazy and intense as Kingdom where is was just non-stop. The zombies here are a lil docile, I’d say. There is gore still, seeing how this is a K-drama. But if you can handle Kingdom, you can handle this.

The supporting characters are what made this show shine on top of the leads. They are SO GOOD at being such hate-able characters! The doctor and the building rep homg. You really see how selfish humans can become when faced with a crisis.

The pacing overall is good except for the rushed ending.

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The worst of the Light-On Series ... yet

Only watch this is you want to watch Fan Cheng Cheng. Otherwise, this Light-On Series (LOS) is a complete waste of time.

Think .. a bunch of school kids trying to save the world... from an evil organisation.. when the LOS really shouldn't be this kind of show considering their success in 2020. The producers were probably trying to experiment but .. oh gosh this is so bad.

There is no smarts in this. No grand scheme. What you see is what you get. And cheesy lame. Feng Shaofeng basically plays a middle-aged man who got thrown into this hero role when he shouldn't. He and his character both, they can't pull it off.

The female lead cannot act. Period. She is stiff, with expressions that don't match. You basically won't feel any empathy for her.

Fan Cheng Cheng was the only good actor in this entire series. Unfortunately his character is so so flawed, and cheesy too.

Sorry for the rant. (Give me back the past 10 hours of my life!)

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Light, Funny & good Stress Relief

I really like this! It’s cute and funny.

Whilst the plot is nothing new, it’s a good mix between light humour and a small sinister scheme. The show is not 100% romance as the characters are also entangled in some Palace Court schemes. It’s well paced, neither slow nor rushed and a good mix of fun with serious. There are some illogical plots, but then again this isn’t a crime drama so I’m happy to let these slip.

Chemistry is very good between the FL and ML. It’s not sizzling or over the top, but they’re decently nice together. Special mention goes to the 2nd ML for executing his overly jealous role well.

This is my first show with Zhao Lusi as the FL and she’s good! I’m keen to chase her other shows now. The cute and funny role has been her typecast but she’s good at it so why not? For Xu Kaicheng, it’s my first time watching him and he’s alright. Not extremely talented or amazing but he played the tall, serious, protective yet cute ML pretty well.

At just 30 episodes, I recommend this for a good ‘ol destress after work or studies. I had a good laugh every day.

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Slow. Just slow.

Ah this is a tough one to review because I really want to like this show.

[Just to disclaim, I watched Forever & Ever (FE) after One & Only (OO). I did not read the novel before watching the shows]

Pros:
- the show started off quickly. 5 minutes into the first episode and off we go with the main couple.
- Bai Lu's acting is a 10/10 here. She carried OO together with Ren Jialun but over here, she topped it off a notch further. Her glances, side eyes, smirks, smiles and styling were all 10/10 here. I enjoyed just watching her expressions and looks.
- it does justice to the pain we had to endure in OO.
- the side characters are pretty cute and funny.
- there are sweet awww moments between Shi Yi and ZSC.
- Ren Jialun had some good emotional scenes towards the end.

Cons:
- the pacing.is.so.so.so.slow!!! I had to skip and fast forward half the show.
- it probably should be a 20-episode drama instead of 30 episodes.
- Zhousheng Chen is too stiff here. He's abnormally stiff even for an awkward chemistry professor. He's so reserved about his physical touches yet, he has no qualms about getting in bed with Shi Yi (???).
- Ren Jialun's glances in FE unfortunately didn't carry any weight nor invoked any feelings in me this time.
- too many kiss-block moments it got a little lame and tiring after a while.

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Beautiful love story

A must watch. It's a good blend between romance and the palace politics genre.

Non-Spoiler Section:

Slow paced at the start but with many little sweets. Things start to pick up from around episode 10 onwards. Best part? It’s only 24 episodes long. Right at a sweet spot without being draggy with fillers again like all other shows.

Story-wise, It’s not just all romance but also royal schemes and politics. In fact, the royal schemes form the backbone of this show. Super exciting and ruthless! I really liked how intense the schemes were (even if it tore our couple apart). It's nowhere near Nirvana in Fire, but it did remind me of NOF.

We can’t possibly do this review without talking about the leads. This is my first Allen Ren show. Bai Lu didn’t impress me much previously (from The Legends) but their chemistry and relationship in this show is 200%. They are so respectful and subtly sweet towards each other. I particularly love the flashbacks where they remember small little sweet moments like waiting to have a meal or drink tea together. It’s not sizzling romance but respectful love. The gazes that Allen Ren gives are so indescribable... they're just very comforting eyes.

All the supporting characters are also very good. I’ve never seen any of them before in other shows yet they all act so well and have really nice chemistries with each other.

Special mention to Shiyi’s mother. She is such an upright family-name-first yet loving mother.

The production/edits are also very good. Everything flows beautifully in order, there are no unnecessary and repetitive flashbacks. No long stares. Quite perfectly done. Except some battles which were a little odd if you look closely but if you don't pay attention, they're perfectly fine. The ending felt a bit rushed to me considering how slow-paced the first few episodes were but I suppose this is normal in c-dramas.

Just gonna end this with some self-absorbed awards I’m giving to the characters lol.

Uncle of the Year - Zhou Shengchen!
Wingman of the Year - The Monk
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I’m just glad his death wasn’t so graphic and it was a lot more acceptable for me. Shiyi's death on the other hand was tragic and hard for me.

And yes, I see the Game of Thrones references. Zhou Shengchen dressing up like a Night’s Watch and the Red Wedding massacre.

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Can never go wrong with Qin Lan

Disclaimer: I’m a huge Qin Lan 姐 fan and I watched The Rational Life (TRL) right after We Are All Alone (WA3).

Also a heads up. They get together really late in the show (eps 20+) but this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. One, you get to cut the unnecessary misunderstandings. Two, they squeeze all the lovey dovey moments in the last few episodes. The buildup however is rather long and torturous.

Honestly when I read the synopsis, I was skeptical about how it’d turn out because the storyline sounds very typical and I’ve never watched any of Dylan’s shows. Also, how dragged out is a jiejie’s love story going to be over 35 episodes? It must be so lame and boring to have to watch through the perennial younger, lower-earning male partner issues over 35 episodes.

But I was wrong. First, I must say you will never go wrong with Qin Lan. She did WA3 so perfectly and this was no any less. She plays this rational (no pun intended), single, career-woman who is caught between office politics but she plays her politics well. Her expressions and 100% on point. You can see that she is a true professional actress and not just an idol + pretty face. Also side note, I love her calm voice. It’s probably the calmest tv voice I’ve ever come across.

Then her chemistry with Dylan. It’s impeccable. He plays this young, bashful but intelligent assistant who tries to protect and cover her from the mean office politics. And guess what? They actually make a really good couple! Their age gap in real life is 19 years. Their age gap in show is 10 years. Honestly, they only look 5 years apart to me. Qin Lan is ageless. Their scenes together are so sweet. I love watching how he takes the initiative all the time but as Ruoxin started accepting the fact that he is her boyfriend, she started taking the initiative and flirting with him herself.

I just gotta say though, Ruoxin’s mother is really psychotic. I wanted to smash my head every time she comes on screen. But I suppose that means the actress who plays her did a good job then.

As for the side character and stories, I honestly skipped them all because I’m really here just for Qin Lan. But I get that the side stories explore important societal issues, such as couples who cannot agree on whether to have a baby, couples with financial and career disparities.

Honorary mention is Boss Xu. As much as his character instilled a lot of fear and jealousy in me for chasing after Ruoxin and being arrogant about it, the actor who played him is really good.

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imho the best modern C-drama to date in 2021

**Non-spoiler section**

Tight, gripping, fast-paced. Never a dull moment.

The star of this show really is Qin Lan. I didn’t have much impression of her (weak and easily bullied) character in Yanxi Palace but her performance in this show threw me off my seat. It really did her justice and I loved every minute of her in it. She’s this smart, witty, aggressive yet empathetic character that I learn so much from.

What’s better is that this show is a fresh idea. The focus is on the ruthless celebrity world which I believe many of us would like to know more. This opened my eyes about how their world works, the stakes and story behind each production, each weibo post. A much fun watch, actually.

Talk about couples. I love the chemistry between the FL and ML. They are funny at times. Both are successful in their careers so you don’t have the perennial issue of one earning more than the other. And Mo Bei provides such a loving support to our iron lady after a long, hard day at work. <3

Really a thumbs up from me. One of the best modern shows I’ve watched. Love the FL’s outfits and make up in this show too. It makes her look 10 years younger than in Yanxi Palace and The Eight.

OST - 10/10 the 3 main songs are sooo good.

Rewatchability - 10/10 all of Mo Xiang Wan’s yelling at people and giving love to her artists are worth rewatching over and over.

Closure - 10/10. ‘Nuff said. You gotta watch this yourself.

Also, R.I.P Godfrey. Taken away too soon from us.


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My fav work relationships and friendships in this drama:

Xiang Wan + Guan Xian: if these two don’t have their own spouses I can imagine them growing old together and annoying each other.

Xiang Wan + Ruan Li Hua: how she handles a veteran diva who’s out of touch with showbiz.

Xiang Wan + Song Qian: how she fights for a neglected yet stubborn stage actor.

Xiang Wan’s ‘gift’ to Zai Zai was the best arc ever. It was so emotional and perfect on many levels.

Lin Xiang has a very true and realistic character. Episode 35 was a terribly heavy episode for me. I’ve never cried an entire episode in my life. You get to see the consequence, regret and redemption in all those around her. R.I.P. and I hope no artist will ever have to go through this.

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Deep and patriotic

The best part of this drama for me is the suspenseful missions that they undertake. This alone I can give 10/10 because they actually get me off my seat and are perfectly executed.

43 episodes is just about right. Thank god this is not another 70-episode epic which most of the times drag on unnecessarily.

Vert aptly released in the year of the CPC's 100th anniversary. It captures the sacrifices made to bring China to victory. Whenever someone on the show gets sacrificed, you can see the pain and despair in Zhu Yi Long's eyes.

In terms of acting, the veteran actors did it for me. Old Gu, Old Chen, Old Ji were my favourites. Surprisingly I didn't feel the chemistry between the FL and ML. It's not a romance drama, I understand. But I still didn't get any feels from the main couple. Instead, the camaraderie between the veterans and the ML were the star chemistries in this show.

Why I can't give it a 10/10? It's typically not my favourite genre due to the heavy and depressed undertones. Also the ML-FL chemistry falling flat for me. Everything else is fine and I'd recommend it.

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Veterans for the win

This is the best Chinese cop drama I've watched to date and it brings back so many memories of the good old TVB days from the 90's-00's.

The veteran actors are the real highlight. All my favs are literally in there. You can never go wrong with Wu Gang and Wang Jin Song. The other veterans are superb too and especially with Simon Yam in the recipe. Young actors - Huang Jin Yu definitely did a good job. The girls were a bit meh and weak to me but they're not that important since this is not a love/romantic drama.

It is not without flaws. There are plot holes and the ending was a little rushed but overall, the directing and execution were very very good. The action, the emotions, the yelling (lol).

I really recommend this if you're looking for a police drama.

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Dilraba + Johnny Huang = fireworks!

The chemistry between the FL and ML is sizzling hot! I would watch show purely for that and the fashion eye candy.

I would recommend this show if you want something with humour and lots of eye candy in a modern day setting.

Story-wise, it's nothing new. Rich CEO falls in love (rather quickly) with someone he stumbled across in his industry. They have really hot and sweet moments ... then they have their arguments and misunderstandings.

The side relationships are really good too. The friendship between Zhou Fang and Qin Qing, and the sibling tag team between Song Lin and Song Luo. I rate this rather highly because the casting is quite perfect.

Downside? This show could have been compressed to 30 episodes but it went on until 45 episodes. To be frank, the last 1/3 of the show bored me quite a bit because the misunderstandings and conflicts just start repeating themselves over and over. There's also a little too much emphasis on the side characters (QQ & WS) in the last arc.

But really, Dilraba and Johnny has one of the best on-screen chemistry I've seen. Dilraba has improved so much since she's started acting and I would say this is one of her best works. As for Johnny, this is my first time watching his show and I'm 100% impressed. It just sucks that his personal life scandal ruined the ratings for this show when it aired.

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