Reviews

Disappointment of the Year

Queen of Tears was one of my most anticipated dramas ever since it was first announced. Crash Landing on You was my first introduction to Kdramas. When I found out that Park Ji Eun, the writer of CLOY, was working on another drama with Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Ji Won, I was really excited to say the least.

The drama seemed to have everything going for it: a top-notch cast, great cinematography, and impressive direction. The first half of the drama was very engaging when the focus was on the main leads' relationship.

Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Ji Won both killed it as Baek Hyun Woo and Hong Hae In. They both gave it their all to breathe life into their characters. I am particularly happy for Kim Ji Won as with Queen of Tears, she gets her first major hit drama as a lead. She has always been underrated even though she's been a leading actor for damn near a decade now. Of course Kim Soo Hyun was already a top actor but with QOT he has consolidated his position as the Number 1.

The OSTs for the drama are amazing. Each and every OST is so beautifully crafted. The cinematography and imagery of the drama was also breathtaking. The directors were at the top of their game with this one.

However, it breaks my heart to say this, but the writing was the weakest aspect of this drama. It seems like the writer didn't know what she wanted this drama to be. Is this a Rom Com, a thriller, a makjang? As we progress into the second half the drama becomes a hot mess of a various genres. The writer's fixation on the villain, Yoon Eun Seong who I have to say is one of the most pathetic villains in history, really ruins this drama.

The writer resorted to employing overused and outdated tropes to further the story. The narrative devolved into predictable plot twists and one-dimensional characters. With all these plot twists and focus on villains, it wasn't even fully explained why the villains did what they did. The Chairman's Mistress' motivation remained unknown. The writer was looking to get a shock reaction out of audiences with one plot twist after another, without thinking much about the narrative.

QOT is at its best when the focus is on the main leads' relationship. However with everything else going on in the story, we hardly get to spend any time on exploring their relationship. Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Ji Won's chemistry is out of this world but its sadly underutilized in this drama. In the end Queen of Tears fails to live up to the hype and potential, and ends up being a huge disappointment.

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Well-acted, Mature and Dark drama with a controversial Female Lead

At the writing of this review, its MDL rating is at 8.5. I am actually a little surprised that it’s so high. Not that I don’t like the drama, in fact, I really like it. But for the fact that with quite a controversial and flawed female lead, who has made some questionable decisions and said some mean words, I think some watchers might really be put off by her.

“Will Love in Spring” is definitely not a romantic comedy. Death is a central theme, and if this is one of your taboo subjects, do not watch this drama. There are some funny and sweet/fluffy moments. But for the most part, this is a mature, dark, healing drama. It’s a character-driven drama that focuses on our main leads' development and their relationships with family members and each other. This is a mature drama that makes you think.

Li Xian and Zhou Yu Tong have excellent chemistry from start to finish. Their romance is nicely developed from when they first met in high school, to reconnecting again as adults. They had a long and bumpy ride before they hit the final destination in the very last episode. Zhang Jie (FL) is an independent, feisty, outgoing professional woman who still struggles with low-esteem due to her disability. However, at one point, I do find her shenanigans a little repetitive. I also believe many viewers are mad at her during the New Year’s Eve episode (ep 15?). Her actions and words towards Chen Mai Dong (ML) were uncalled for and downright mean. But given what happened that night at home, her past trauma and what she’s gone through in life, I can understand her and choose to have faith in her. What was most disappointing to me is her decision in the last couple episodes. Not being honest with ML about her decision and plans until the very end is more unforgiving to me. They have always had an honest and open relationship from bickering to comforting each other. Why can’t she be honest now? But, I give props to the drama for crashing and burning in the end. The final episode wraps out everything nicely and gives me closure to Chen Main Dong and Zhang Jie’s story. The conversation they had at the NanPing train station: FL’s realization of her actions and ML’s clear understanding of FL’s personality, strengths and weaknesses, and his explanation and forgiveness, brought me so much comfort and joy. In the end, they found love and learned to love. For romance lovers, let’s not forget to include the fact that this couple is very affectionate and not afraid to display their affections through kisses and hugs. Lastly, Chen Mai Dong is another green flag and only he can balance out Zhang Jie’s energy.

There are so many lovely side characters in this drama. I love the relationship of the siblings. Niao Niao (little sis) is played by the talented child actress, Zhang Xi Wei. What a little firecracker and smartass she is. She brings so much color to the drama. Wu Jun Ting plays the quirky and sweet younger brother, Zhuang Yan. Who has a pet goose and walks it like a dog?? Zhuang Yan! I haven’t seen Wu Jun Ting since “Time and Her are Just Right”. I loved him in that drama and remembered his nice deep voice. I also envy the friendship between Grandma Chen and Grandma Lin. They are the poster children for best-friend-forever friendship. I enjoy the sisterhood between FL and Wang Xi Xia. Wang Peng looks so pretty as the best friend. She looks so much more mature and sexy than in her previous roles. Last but not the least, FL’s mother. I bet she’s another character that many hate. She’s the typical loud Chinese mother, who can’t stop criticizing her children. She’s tolerable but at one point I also want to strangle her. Glad she got a lot better towards the last few episodes. I am not sure if it’s the actress or the character, but she always seems to talk and laugh with a fake smile.

I would love to see more of the funny romance between BFF Wang Xi Xia and the Doc. The Doc is so quirky and adorable at the same time. Their scenes give the drama a more light-hearted touch, as they are hilarious together. I just want more of them.

I am not familiar with the funeral industry or the role of an embalmer. So, I can’t comment on how realistic “Will Love in Spring” is portraying that. It’s not a profession that we see in dramas often, so I am glad to get a peek into ML’s job.

I would recommend this drama to those that love a realistic portrayal of life, struggles, and relationships. The characters in this drama are all flawed and they make decisions that we don’t always agree with. But life is not rosy and we are not perfect. If you don’t mind the topic of death, this is an excellently acted drama. I had a great time watching this, even if I had a roller coaster ride of emotions.



Completed: 5/4/2024 - Review #437

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Execution was Brilliant!!!

The Execution was just Brilliant!!! I get it when some people say it overhyped.. maybe because there are some drama's which needs more attention and maybe the story line of other drama's might be better. But because of that you shouldn't mark it as a plain drama. I normally enjoy drama's where FL has power and where FL likes ML first. This drama is more than that.. you can clearly see character development. How miscommunication can make situations more miserable. Screenplay writing was great. There are some same old scenes like saving FL life in childhood. That was a bit meh..
And one more thing I don't really remember OST of drama's and I don't quite like OST when it goes on repeating.. But I loved this OST and it's very new to me to like OST. I really enjoyed the music. It's quite nice..
Overall my conclusion is go for it!! I loved it it!! It's was a bit smooth ride and not at the same time. If you really want to enjoy 16 episodes without a worry about reality.. GO FOR IT!!!!

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Rage all through the film

Trust me, you've gotta try to watch this once in awhile.. but first, I want you to open your eyes from the cruel and unfair world, and of course our every actions have consequences but what about the rich? One thing to say, EAT THE RICH!

This film has so much depth and the rawness of Kim Hyeyoon's acting here is phenomenal, no wonder this actress got a lot of mainstream acting awards from this film alone.

It talks about being oppressed, most especially by those dirty evil capitalist/politician, and making them feel the FEMALE RAGE in return.

The ending just satisfied me, true to life, painful reality, unfortunately.

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Not the best but not the worse

Not too much positive to say about this drama. Pretty basic story, recycled plot, a lot of exaggerated angst created just to create a heightened story but no real depth. This story does not have much story building, it’s just a bunch of random things happening to the FL each episode to draw out the angst of their relationship; no real substance. On the positive end, the acting wasn’t bad but not the greatest. Costumes and sets weren’t the worse but pretty mediocre. OST was decent enough. This is definitely a one a time watch and wouldn’t necessarily recommend but can serve as an in between angsty drama while you’re waiting on your anticipated dramas.

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An okay break for the usual.

This is my first review, I'm not sure why. We watched this for the cuisine, because we're foodies. We usually watch xanxia, wuxia dramas and take short breaks from them. We went back to this as when it had originally dropped on Disney+, it was dubbed over, with no way to fix that. Well, they eventually fixed it and we gave it a go.

The food scenes were amazing, however as we watched more and more. You start to pick up on why the show was placed on Disney... Which I can't stand anything Disney usually, the new live action Mulan was hardly a pass, just as this is/was.

When you present Chinese culture and history to Americans, or those watching from Disney, of all places. You begin to wonder why, they don't depict it like a real Chinese Drama is presented, in China. From the social norms, to the personalities, to the general lifestyle.

They show the entire duck presented at a table, normal in Chinese culture. But off-putting to Western culture with their soft-mind and heavily judgmental minds.

They present the duty of the Crown Prince to marry someone and how men are not equal to women. But then the ML prods the FL in public, for a kiss.

People just nonchalantly walk in and out of spaces as they please. The Crown Prince easily giving up his position. The Empress allowing him to do so. His brothers being in on it. Leading the emperor more than likely, also in on it. Seeing the Crown Prince's Eunuch hold back the other Princes. The obvious eavesdropping on the Prince. I could just could go on and on and on.

It was literally a westernized romance, with ideas taken from the Korean drama, with the premise of food and wrapped up to be an acceptable fairytale for Westerners to watch. I just couldn't by the end of it.

Which is another issue. That ending. Her starting up her own hostel, no. But just when all that is occurring, you're cut off midway with an alternate ending of her choosing the Crown Prince. So you're left not knowing the outcome of her final competition, or if she even comes back 6 months later.

Finally, you watch the "alternate" ending and you're re-capped with everything that just occurred in the last 2 or 3 episodes and you've wasted half an hour of your life rewatching more inaccurate fictions to Ancient Chinese culture. Yikes.

The saving grace was the casting, which had a lot of familiar faces. But the rest was a let down.

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Sloooow Burn

First, if you don’t like the “brothers” falling for each other but seem okay with the sister getting on with the other brother. There is underlying hypocrisy in your thinking. Second, why are people upset with the age difference ter the brothers but are okay with the sister getting it on with the other much older brother.

This is a heavy hearted series. The mother is a piece of shit. I am not sure if I am the only one but I get the implication that she also sexually advise Qian which is why he’s sexually traumatized and for the most part asexual until he got it on with Zi Yuan.

I did not see Lin with Le but it was a pleasant surprise to see Sam Lin back in a BL even if the relationship is ambiguous.

People had to wait for the cursed episode 11 to get their smexy scene. And boy did the series deliver on it.

I can see why so many people like it in a sea of bad BLs we had this year. But if you’re not into a good storytelling series. This isn’t for you.

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My first/last review because, people brought the reviews down for reasons I cannot understand

The subject gives pretty much idea on why I am giving my review.
I read the novel by Priest and watched Unknown. I have to say this. I like Unknown better purely because it gives insights in to their relationship. No they are not related. Qian adopts Yuan in to his family so that he can go to school. Yuan and Qian's relationship evolves from where it was to something else. I personally think Yuan is so dedicated and attached to Qian that he subconsciously becomes someone who Qian needs in his life.
For those who find the story unrealistic- I can assure you the situation Qian is in where he has to support his family is not unrealistic. It is seen in most of the asian countries that lack resources to support their large populations.
For those who are contemplating to watch or not watch: Unknown is a masterpiece from cast to story telling. Its beautiful. If you are tolerating the nonsense Thai and some Japanese BLS, loved stay with me - you will love this.
Don't get sidetracked by reviewers who have their own reasons to bring this down.

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Meh ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Pretty mid given the first season was so impressive...BUT, I will say I did not mind the change of actress as much as I thought I would. There was definitely a solid reason for that, I just wasn't a fan of that bit of plot, also I didn't think the ML and FL vibed as well this season. However, the CGI and visual aspect was not mid at all-- very nice graphics!!

The story: exhausting. I felt like the more layers that were added to the plot, the more I was wishing for the end (and it was only 10 episodes sooo). I was not as engaged in the plot as I was in the first season, I think largely because of Jin Mu...same dude, doing the same stuff, and every evil scheme he came up with was such a reach. Not his biggest fan, really hope he stays dead <3

My *biggest* gripe with the whole thing was that Naksu never got her time to shine!! Her first scene in season 1 was so cool, it captured me immediately and had me waiting for her return the entire season and this season...but it never happens :( I thought for sure we would see Naksu and Jang Uk vs fire bird! And the end of this season hinted at that she could potentially train again to use her powers but like....now we have to wait for a season 3?! Which is super unlikely, so that sucks. :'(

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Oof what a rollercoaster!

Keep in mind as you read this I am not nitpicky and I enjoy shows for what they are. This all just my personal feelings on this title.

I was enthralled almost from the get go. There are so many emotions running thru this entire series. FYI - There are 41 rpisodes not 27. I watched this on Gagaoolala.

It is a bitter sweet love story that spans 110 years. I was never bored watching this. Annoyed alot but you are suppose to be. I my opinion it was well written. The jumps back and forth in time (forward and backward) were never confusing. They served their purposes well.

This is a story of love, deceit, betrayal, greed, and loss. I dont know how many tears I shed so be prepared for that.

Warning: There is rape and a coerced relationship.

Also some of the effects were not the best but I could overlook this as I did enjoy the story.

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Interesting fantasy story

Ji Ze (Zhang Rou Nan) is a student who is also an internet celebrity who looks cheerful on the outside but actually feels depressed because of the trauma of her dark past.

One day Xin Tang (Sun Chen Jun), a man who comes from another planet, visits the graves of his parents and plans to return to his home planet in 100 days because the portal to return will only open once, he has the same supernatural abilities as his father, he can creates the illusion of happiness by whispering words, if the person who receives the whispered words feels happy then it will increase Xin Tang's survival by the appearance of a red life line on Xin Tang's palm.

While at the tomb he met Ji Ze who tried to record their meeting live. He didn't like being recorded and used his supernatural ability by whispering words to make Ji Ze forget about it. This supernatural ability cannot be used on the same person 3 times, if it is used 3 times on the same person it will tie their fate. This happened to Xin Tang because he accidentally saved Ji Ze several times by using his supernatural powers. Xin Tang will live as long as Ji Ze feels happy. Knowing this, Xin Tang tries to make Ji Ze happy by becoming a star on her live streaming show. Can Xin Tang succeed in making Ji Ze happy considering that the girl suffers from depression due to her past life trauma?

The premise is very good because I have never watched a fantasy film/drama with a special story like this, I really hope that it can be adapted into a drama with a longer story and it will be more satisfying.

This film is directed by director Lou Lou and also collaborates with Gou Jing Ming who is also the director of the film Cry Me A Sad River (2018) where Zhang Rou Nan also plays a supporting role

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Classic RomCom with nice moments

The story sounded good : 2 rivals in school meeting each other again several years later. Both having bad days (depression, work issue, burnout, bankrupt, …), supporting each other and falling in love and then finally getting better.

A good start but quickly turned into a classic and predictable RomCom (with all tricks and clichés of this kind of drama). Nice moments sometimes but no surprise after all…
So nothing special to say, not a bad or good drama, just a classic one…

Great casting but usual overacting (that I don’t like).
It was my first drama with Park Shin Hye as FL, I’ve liked her. And my second drama with Park Hyung Sik, I’ve prefered his acting in Soundtrack #1.
Actors of support roles were good too (interesting « support couple », too bad their love story hasn’t been not more developped).

Production and direction were good.
I didn’t really pay attention to OST.
No rewatch value for me

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