Reviews

If a plate of scrambled eggs wrote a screenplay, it would have written this.

You may or may not have fun watching this one. But you'll probably have fun talking about it in the comments.

So many things don't really make sense. So. Many. Things. Where to even start.

You will be confronted on many levels by this drama. It begins with an ML who is supposed to be "almost 30".... being played by an actor who is 47. That is an 18 year age difference. Some say the ML is hot and manly. That is up to you to decide. But we can safely say there is something strange going on in his neck area, and his hair makes him look like an ancient chinese car salesman. Maybe that will bother you. Maybe it wont. Who knows.

Then you will be confronted by a 2ML who you will have to decide if you ship. Will you think he's Simpy McSimperson, an NPC with no real character of his own, who is annoying and stupid and serves no real purpose in the show? Or will you think he's sexylicious, and the FL's only real friend, and she's stupid for not running off with him to live a live of banditry in the woods? There is no telling, you'd just have to find out for yourself.

Then you will be confronted by the way the ML treats the FL. Is he manly and protective with reasons of his own for doing what he does? Or is he stockholming the FL and being a spineless passive aggressive douchebag? That's up to you to decide.

You will also be confronted by ML/FL kiss scenes. Will you think they are fiery and electric? Or will you think they are disturbing and strange. There is only one way to find out, and that's to see it for yourself.

And then... you will be confronted by plot holes. Lots of them. You could make a game out of it.... how many plot holes did YOU find? Five? Ten? Twelve? Winner gets bragging rights. You will likewise be confronted with a mind boggling amount of scheming and villainy. Sometimes you will not understand why a character did what they did or said what they said. Does anyone have the answers to clear your confusion? Perhaps. Or perhaps not.

I can say, the styling was really phoned-in and lo-effort. There were some scenes where I was looking at the dotted pattern along the wigline on ML closeups. I can also say that there is an abundance of overacting. It's not THAT bad, but it's there. Many actors and actresses on this drama were overacting to one degree or another. For some, it was just a hint of overacting, like the FL. For others on the supporting cast, the overacting was really quite much. And that's fine, I don't really mind that so much if other factors are present. But just so you know going in... this is less of an understated, subtle drama.... and more of a thrill-ride drama. I guess what you'd expect from 30-min episodes, really. Let's just say these performances aren't winning any awards, know what I'm sayin. It's meant more for fun, and not for serious viewing. If you go into this one very serious-minded.... you are going to have a BAD time. But if you go in to watch just for fun.... who knows what kind of time you'll have.

It's all mixed up. It's kind of mindless. Plot and logistics of things are pretty nebulous. Ending was kind of.... shall we say conversation-inspiring. Will you like it? Maybe. Or.... maybe not. I am reminded of a Blackadder quote by Lord Talbert Buxomley: "This drama talks like a plate of beans negotiating it's way out of a cow's digestive system." And I think that says it best, really.

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Crash Landing on My Heart

This drama is just too good! Everything was well done and perfectly balanced.
I actually started to watch this because my English teacher recommended it to me, since watching K-dramas was something we had in commen (where I'm from the teachers are very friendly with their students so it isn't weird to talk to them about stuff like that). She watched it with her daughter and said that they liked it and that she thought I would like it too and oh boy, she was right.
So please, if you haven't seen "Crash Landing on You", PLEASE watch it!! You will not regret it.

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In the race of chicken or the egg, the mother hen wins!

Let’s just get the easy bits out of the way first. This series is watchable and entertaining at times. The OTP are well matched and they have good chemistry. However, this is where things get complicated.

As one of my friends commented after finishing the show, who is the FL of this drama? Ok, maybe that is a slight exaggeration, but she does have a point. While there is no doubt Yang Zi is the FL, her mother’s role is more titular. In fact, so many of the subplot radiate from the matriarch that her screen time and presence more than rival the FL’s. Furthermore, a lot of the time, most characters are placed in a reactive roles due to her machinations and has little agency.

I can understand that this will resonate with a lot of Asian viewers because they are probably living in a similar situation or knows someone who is. It is a reasonable premise to kick-start the show and give the FL reasons to grow. In that sense, the first half of the show is the best. This is helped by the sage like grandmother who sees all and pulls the strings to get our OTP pass the frenemy stage. Her presence counterbalances the mum’s and provides a safe harbour for our leads.

It all changes after she passed. The FL’s mum’s presence looms larger than ever before. Her interference reaches new heights once we factor in the grandma's legacy. I understand that it is an effective way to introduce some angst as the official antagonist was a bit light weight. However, it also means that the show becomes unbalanced and lacks focus. Everyone is tiptoeing around the mum and keeping secrets from her which set up more confrontations later. It is a vicious cycle.

In the meantime, the mum continues to meddle in people’s affairs and guilt trip her family regularly. It is tiresome to watch and might trigger some viewers. It distracts us from our CP’s romance. When love is in the air, it is sweet and swoonworthy, but they are like deer in the headlight. After more confrontations and some heart-to-heart talks, the mum finally tones down her actions, but it is an uneasy truce.

The problem from my perspective is that we can't really hate the mum because she is not evil in the literal sense, but her constant meddling is annoying and very harmful to her closest and dearest. Yet she always falls back to the old chestnut of “I’m doing this for the good of ….”. Hence all the characters are in a no-win situation.

This shunted several characters into the margins. Chief among them is the ML. He should have a much stronger presence but between helping the FL in her business and being the peacemaker to her family, he became just the nice guy putting out spot fires. In fact, the mum casted such a big shadow that no characters are spared. This is even more dramatic in the last 3 eps when it is all about the mum.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m all for a mother centric show and there have been some excellent ones. However, in this case, it felt like the mum was initially used as a catalyst for change but ends up taking over the show. The series is still watchable, but it can be very trying at times.

Ultimately, if you are looking for an escapist rom com then this might hit too close to home to be fun. If you want a family melodrama then this is inferior because it is just a hotchpotch of tired tropes. Throw in the PITA matriarch and we have an inverse trifecta. One time watch for me.

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I guess you can call it fate

Under the gun is nothing out of the ordinary, just a short series with romance retold once again.

Cha Se-Young is your typical "rich" FL, from a good home and not much drama at her house other than match making mother. Bonus points because she is not a brat, doesn't flex her wealth and is actually nice and proactive. Whilst our ML, Go Gun, is rough around the edges due to life but is also a decent human being who was forced to grow up too soon. The meet up is as destined and they eventually bond and date. Even though it's short there aren't as many plot hole that make you disinterested nor a heavy focus on side plots that don't add to the story but we do have a healthy amount of coincidences and clichés (as expected). Bonus points for cute height differences, how they always support each other (mostly FL but still) and proper communication between the two most of the time. Even when there's disputes they are quickly resolved and everything goes back to normal. It's a cute romance with one or two tear jerking scenes, and adults not acting like adults most of the time.

It's a story of how life can be mean at times but with the right people on your side you can hold on just to live another day. And if you are lucky enough, get through it, and live to tell the story. There's good chemistry between the leads, although I must say I wasn't a fan of everything especially how they initially got together because she practically did to him what SML did to her successfully but I digress. Notice how I didn't say much about the SML? Well he is a plot device, and that's about it. It's a decent watch to get out of a slump or if you want a quick watch.

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Well...I liked Jerry Yan...

Late to the game here in 2024. Was going to write a long diatribe, but if you read Manivnajfan's review, she pretty much nailed it. So I'll be brief
FL actor is is not believably hysterical. I agree one would be hysterical if a man succeeded in taking full custody of your kid and treating you like crap, but she was terrible at crying, her acting was pretty bad.

ML, yeah. total douche and treated women like dirt. But given what a psycho his mother was and how she treated him, and his father abandoning him, you can see why. I can actually see why he fell for FL. He is fascinated by how she mothers their son. That's how he falls for her. I get that he doesn't know what love is, so seeing it for the first time he is understandably drawn to it. The way he treats his kid is lovely, but handing her over to his horrible mother and letting her treat the son like sh*t is inexcusable. Also, the guilt the FL puts on him to forgive all these a*holes? First, NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!!! The mom guilting him into giving his liver?? "He's your father!" She's unbelievable. I won't go into his forgiving his half brother for possibly drugging and raping his wife to make him leave her. Others have commented.

2ML: predator. stalker. not only won't take no for an answer but full on workplace harasser. Disgusting piece of scum. Already discussed the drugging and sexual abuse. The fact that FL constantly lies to ML CONSTANTLY saying she wasn't with him when she was. Let's him paw all over her, but still doesn't learn her lesson and stay away from him. Hurts the ML over and over and makes him cry even, after he begs her to stop hurting him.

Mother: come on. Is there really a mother who would treat a child like that? I mean, I know there are. But I don't see her motivation. She is enraged with the man who impregnated her then left her, and spends her time pushing her kid to take revenge but hten when he does she slaps him? She said, "Are you seriously hurting him because you were upset about being called an illegitimate child all your life? " Um. Yeah, lady. that's what he's upset about. Then she tells him, "He hurt me, but I'm over it. Now do your duty and give him your liver." The level of manipulation by EVERYONE in this story against the ML is inexcusable.

And her grandson....um, "Give me my grandson! Leave him here! His mom doesn't get to see him anymore! We'll enroll him in a school and beat the snot out of him until he's excellent!" Why the heck does he live with the grandmother? She hates him. She doesn't know how to take care of him. Does no one see this? And the FL sees the abuse of her son by this woman and tells the son, "Tongtong, your grandmother loves you. Obey her. " This is after she yells at him and breaks his toys. I can't even with this. The son, Tongtong, is the only honest person in the show. Except....

3ML, the hero of the show.!!!!! The only one who really shows true kindness to the ML and care about the him. is honest with the FL, tells it like it is to 3FL. He watches over both the FL and the 3FL. I loved him.

Overall:
Liked:
*3ML
*ML actor. I show how shallow I am here, but I loved watching Jerry Yan. His acting was really natural. He displays a realm of emotions. His annoyance, heartbreak and tears, jealousy, love for his son, playfulness and attraction to and chemistry with the FL -- even attraction to and chemistry with his ex , all very believable and natural. . Also, he's nice to watch. Does that make me shallow? Yes. Definitely. Am I ashamed?. Yeah. A little bit. But I stand by my statement.

Hated:
*Others have said this is dubbed. All I know is that using a grown female to imitate a child like they did with Tongtong is creepy and went out of fashion in the US in the late 70s.
*everything else.

I guess that wasn't very brief after all.

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The boys whose names together are not the only thing that look good on them

Who has seen 'Hit Bite Love', the six-episode teen romantic drama released on Jinloe Media's YouTube channel in 2023, which tells the story of six boys from "Rose Garden College" who decide to break all taboos and learn the real truth about love...pain...and growth, don't you remember Burger and King, two of those teenagers?
Don't you remember those two classmates who one day, sitting at their desks next to each other, King, played by Newyear Nawaphat Thannamongkhonsawat, discovers that he forgot a book, so Burger, played by Jur Vasin Traiprakhong, tells him offer yours to share?
Have you already remembered? Of course. It couldn't be any other way, because you immediately connect with the story of these young people that starts from that precise moment, when King sees a drawing of himself in the book and mistakenly assumes that Burger likes it. After this, King finds happiness just thinking that he is loved by the boy who sits next to him and asks him out. However, he will soon discover that everything has been a misunderstanding, because Burger has no feelings for him.
But if in matters of the heart, misunderstandings have caused conflict and broken relationships, they have also brought love, happiness and hope. This is precisely what King finds when Burger enters his life and the two build an emotional connection.
Directed by Jakkaphong Pachara (Yuan), 'Firstly "Like" You' (ตกลงใครชอบก่อน), picks up the story to, through the eyes of Burger, the main narrator, delve into the relationship of the two young high school students .
Based on the entire footage of 'Hit Bite Love', which is just over five hours long, 'Firstly "Like" You' leaves aside everything related to the other two stories, that is, the love triangle between Ken , Shogun and Matteo, and the relationship of the stepbrothers Hida and Saint, to, in about 80 minutes, focus on the birth and evolution of the romance between the president of the school's drama club, and the student transferred to the famous college of high society.
By leaving out everything else, the drama is transformed into a comedy, which achieves a lot of acceptance among an audience that may have rejected the series for addressing topics such as toxic relationships and BDSM.
Bordering on a love triangle that is also not very interested in exploring in depth, the screenwriters Poy Orachat Brahmasreni and Chim Sedthawut Inboon expose in the narrative text themes such as love, adolescence, friendship, discovery, acceptance and personal growth, always in order to entertain, but also to make you reflect.
In this way, we will follow in the footsteps of the young boy with a silly, neurotic, enthusiastic and immature personality who, while he wants to join the drama club because he dreams of being an actor, will have to deal with the persecution of King, who is firmly convinced that his partner class is secretly in love with him.
Personally, I was amused by all of Burger's witticisms to get King away, because every time King approaches him, Burger gets nervous. Likewise, I enjoyed the close relationship between King and his mother, with whom the student has no reservations about confessing his most intimate secrets.
The audience will be able to enjoy how, based on the misunderstanding, King is the one who will be interested in approaching and pleasing Burger. It is pleasant to see how King, a responsible, mature and popular teenager, always surrounded by many girls interested in joining the club to be close to him, suddenly discovers his sexuality while experiencing a homosensual awakening.
'Firstly "Like" You' more than meets what is expected from a film of these characteristics. The keys are, mainly, its script, its aesthetics and its performances, because although the two protagonists have little experience and are only 16 years old during filming, their performances fit perfectly with the narrative style of the story.
Jur Vasin Traiprakhong takes the cake, for his grace, charisma and the way he handles the humorous scenes.
Another element to highlight is the music. Being the same as the series, the cast itself is the one who sings the songs that make up the film's soundtrack. In this way, we will enjoy Jur, Tae, Newyear, Pure, Bigboss, Vic and Alan, who perform "Hit Me Bite Me", a song composed by Alan Campana, and Vic and Tae singing "Oxigen", a song written and scored by Vic Vittawin Panichtamrong.
The photography, by Suchart Makhawimarn, contributes to making the story of two people who become friends and fall in love credible, despite being polar opposites.
Suriya Kaewkrong's editing achieves a fast and quite adequate narrative. However, flashbacks to scenes already presented could have been avoided.
Even so, it is regrettable that, seeking to visualize diversity on screens, the film portrays queer characters in a stereotypical way, due to their continuous screams and mood swings.
While it is true that Thai serial and film fiction with the presence of LGBT+ plots has experienced various changes since its appearance, going from an initial invisibility and stigmatization, in which the characters had to be presented as the opposite of what is morally acceptable in society , to a quantitative increase in these characters, and despite their decrease, traditional and recurring stereotypes continue to be used such as the effeminate LGBT+ character or transsexuals who, due to circumstances, act in a grotesque, exalted or tormented way due to their condition.
Despite the positive increase in the visibility of diverse sexual orientations and identities in BL series and films in this country, creators must take into account that a poor symbolic construction based on stereotypes reinforces not only the deformed social imaginaries about this minority, but the very identity of the collective.
This is even more important if we take into account the great socializing potential that the film and television industries have and the capacity for transnationalization that the distribution platforms of these entertainment products have achieved, as they can promote a distorted vision of this non-human group. only in the Thai national space, but also in the rest of the globe.
'Firstly "Like" You' reminds me of 'Kieta Hatsukoi', the 2021 Japanese teen and school Yaoi romantic comedy from the TV Asahi network, which tells how through a misunderstanding, Aoki, the high school student with a personality Brilliant and in love with Hashimoto Mio, the girl who sits next to him in the classroom, he ends up in a romantic relationship with Ida, his classmate.
I also find similarities with other Thai BL dramas. If in 'My School President', for example, Gun (Fourth - Nattawat Jirochtikul) and Win (Winny - Thanawin Pholcharoenratm) get to know each other more deeply after answering "36 questions that will make people fall in love", in 'Firstly' Like" You' King will propose a series of questions that Burger must answer as part of a theater club survey, claiming that the objective is to get to know the future actor better.
Of the three couples in the series, Burger and King was always my favorite. If they brought joy and life to the series, the film carefully chooses and stages the appropriate scenes to preserve the world created around these characters in the six-episode drama.
The one between King and Burger is a surprisingly tender and innocent teenage romance that is highly recommended, for its humor, for the reflections it invites us to, for the palpable chemistry between the two young people, and for how they manage to create a friendly bond first, romantic. later, without becoming a couple, since we will surely find this in the announced second season.

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Great Watch - wish it could be longer

It's not a perfect story, but I managed to finish the whole series and I look forward to how the story would end. Very entertaining from start to finish. It's a light watch. Lots of great characters except the villains of course and those outside ML's mansion. The cast did a great job. The ML can definitely act. This is the first time I watched any of his drama. Looking forward for more. He's so tall and fit for the role as a general. I'm convinced. ML and FL visuals and chemistry were amazing. I didn't mind the age gap. I just wish they added 2-3 episodes more as the ending felt a little bit rushed and we didn't get a lot of CP time or the wrap some of the fun scenes. I like the character of the sister of ML. It's quite rare to find supporting characters like that. The duo guards of ML were a delight, plus the maid FL.

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This is up there on the peculiar list

This has got to be one of the most peculiar J-Drama I've seen in awhile; It doesn't seem traditionally structured like a normal 4ep drama would be (eg. Friends 2002) but it also isn't avant garde enough for it to get a pass, it just seems like a indie film project that was for some reason split up into 4 episodes instead of just a movie.
The plot itself seems strange. Because I am no where near fluent in Japanese, the more minor nuances of the story were more or less missed at first, but I managed to somewhat get it in the end: ML suspects his girlfriend of cheating, and in typical liberal arts student fashion, he begins something unexpected in response, a documentary of the timeline. Despite it being only 4 episodes long, 23 minutes each, there is a lot of jumping back to the past when they first met and present day, though from all I could tell, most of the past is just his good memories and completely irrelevant to the story (kinda annoying when they could take up 1/3rd+ of the episode). Characters were written in attempt to be deep/thought provoking I feel, but failed. FL just seems manipulative and ML a naive pushover (which was practically pointed out by the tritagonist in ep4).
Technical aspects were good, think I'm gonna stop pointing out how 'good' newer J-Drama are at lighting and all that since that seems uniform in all of them.
Acting I personally think was alright, seemed again like an amateur film project so picking actresses and actors with little experience fit it (not saying they were bad, they all did very well)

Overall I recommend this to people doing Japanese immersion, otherwise don't bother

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Amazing musical performances - a Light and Feel-Good drama

Disclaimer: I enjoy music but won’t say I am a big fan of classical music. I also don’t play any instruments. The rating is purely based on my enjoyment while watching and after watching.

+0.5 because of the beautiful full-length musical performances.

Usually, I would rate a drama like “Reversal Orchestra” an 8.0 rating. The plot is simple and light-hearted. It’s a typical drama about a group of people (musicians here) who work hard to achieve the ultimate goal together. Along the way, you have side stories of different members with a tiny little romance subplot. These side stories are simple enough to give each character a little background, but not long enough to give it depth. There aren't any annoying characters. All the musicians are supportive of each other. There’s no in-group rivalry and they are just TOO nice. This is definitely a feel-good drama. This is not a drama that will spark deep conversations or amaze you in many ways.

But to me, what stands out in this drama compared to other dramas with a music focus, is the amazing performances. If you enjoy classical music, this is the drama for you. Much of the screen time is dedicated to music playing. There are several full-length performances that are amazing to watch and listen to. Oftentimes, I get disappointed when I watch a drama about music, and you get chopped up performances, especially when the characters are supposed to be preparing for this big showdown. The showdown becomes a letdown. But not here! “Reversal Orchestra” not only has a believable orchestra playing the music and we have satisfying performances. It’s quite amazing to see the actors so in sync when playing their instruments. They do make me believe they are true musicians. Each movement is synchronized within the section. It’s beautiful to see. However, what I just described could also be what you dislike most about the drama. You might find it boring because the focus is on music playing and performances. The background music is classical music. There are not songs with lyrics, like a traditional OST.

The actors and actresses deliver good performances as well. It’s a typical J-drama with moments of overdramatic acting. I have been on a Tanaka Kei (ML) binge recently, and am happy to see another side of him. I cannot sing enough praises of his choice of projects. They are so diverse! Kawowaki Mugi plays a likable female lead. So glad she’s not another innocent, naive pushover. She’s kind but could be crazy and feisty.

If you are a classical music lover and want a light and easy watch, “Reversal Orchestra” is definitely the right drama for you. However, if you are looking for something deeper with a stronger message or moral, you might want to look elsewhere.


Completed: 5/1/2024 - Review #436

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Hope just like the title

Watching this drama make me realize how study can actually be fun. This drama taught a lot of lesson of how teacher should guide their student. And how we shouldn't judge other people capability of studying before we know their situation just like the 5 kids in this drama. The thing that I like and agree with is we shouldn't overthinking, donot ever feel regret cause it just make you suffer more, resentment can be your strongest weapon, and etc. Really recommend this drama for those who really like to watch some slice of life and little romance.

For the ending I think it should just cut to 29 ep cause I think it is just unnecessary for it to be 30 ep. Because in the ep 30 it really just feel like it feel weird ending like CY with SY, Li Ran alone, BXX and Jiang divorce. I think they can make it to 29 ep and then in the 4 minute before the ending they can show the past journey how they studied with some good voice over telling the journey we been thought it can be said up and down, from how we start the journey with little hope and trust, from how we were helpless on our situation, to what we become right now with full of hope and trust to keep moving forward, to how we confront with problem and sharing our feeling with other to be better and etc.... Maybe something like that will make the ending better with photo of them graduate from high school with qing bei colledge admitted certification. This is just my opinion

Overall really recommended this drama. It is underated

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More like The Substitute Princess's Suffering

I had to skip a lot of parts due to my weak heart watching an innocent girl suffering from her early life til she was almost dying. I can't deny that there are a lot of cute moments, romantic scenes, and sometimes comedic too. But in the end, this drama is like a torture for me.
I think I will never rewatch it, Im so sorry.
But what I honestly really like is Shen Keyi and Zhou Yu relationship. A friendship with true and genuine feelings, for me at least.
There are a lot of toxic villains that will annoy you, so becareful lol.
But maybe this kinda story indeed exist in ancient china back then idk but it seems so realistic without any fantasies.
No regrets, but still I still had a lot of skips.

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