Reviews

A Mini that does not disappoint!

I went into this with zero expectations and I was not disappointed.
I'm not going to recap the show because the synopsis is pretty accurate. I want to start off with Leo Yang. From his looks, to his voice, to his effortlessly cool idgaf attitude, this man is TAILOR MADE for these types of roles. Not only is he a fantastic actor, he kills the action scenes, and I'm pretty sure he could have chemistry with a rock. He has major bedroom eyes and he's just so nice to watch. Even tho A Sen seems cocky and rather dubious, his true nature is very loving and protective. At one point in the show, Ling Yi is injured and unconscious in the hospital. A Sen has a devastating breakdown. Leo does an excellent job at portraying the desperation A Sen is feeling as he's begging her to wake up. It was a beautiful scene.

Ling Yi is an interesting FL. She's very socially awkward and timid. At least, she appears timid. She's actually extremely strong and determined. She doesn't let herself be intimidated by the dangerous people around her who are a constant threat to her safety. She's not your typical naive girl who needs to be saved. Does A Sen save her? Yes lol. But Ling Yi would throw herself in harms way just as quickly for him, and she does just that several times. Ling Yi is a girl who had to grow up very quickly and that's definitely why she meshes so well with A Sen. Obviously, their lives and experiences are very different. A Sen has spent a decade of his life going to great pains to maintain his identity within the group which means that for a decade, his life has been on the line 24/7. Ling Yi lost the only family she had after an already traumatic childhood and has been alone ever since. They both had very hard lives for different reasons but that's what made them work so well together.

Being that this is a 10 minute per episode mini, there are going to be plot holes and illogical turns of events. If you're an an avid mini watcher like I am then you'll know that this is just the norm. In this case, none of the inconsistencies hindered the plot imo. A Sen magically showing up to save Ling Yi just became funny to me at some point, in a good way. Our leads got together fairly quickly. Their kisses were a delight to watch and there are plenty! There is (kind of?) a 2ML, he's Ling Yi's ex. She has no desire to be with him and is completely devoted to A Sen. And our 2ML is respectful of their relationship (mostly because he's scared of A Sen). He never tries to interfere. So, if you hate love triangle's as much as I do, you're safe from that in this show. Another dreaded enemy of mine, noble idiocy, is not present here. A Sen tried it. He really did. But Ling Yi knew him too well by this point and figured out his plan and was not about to let him put his life at risk by himself.

With angsty mini's, you never know until the final episode if you're going to end up happy of heartbroken. Here, I was left very happy and satisfied.

So, with all that being said...... Go! Watch it! Right now! :)

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well contained story

I really liked the story and the protagonists, especially the main character has a very nice character growth, which is also the meat of the whole show. Each of the charcters make sense in their own contained bubble and where they stand at that moment in their own life; I am placing so much emphasis on this because that is not usually the case, even some of the background supporting characters have their own life going on and its visibly portayed in this series/movie.

the story itself makes sense and is in itself a contained story, with as far as i can see no plot holes, which is nice too

All in all its a very slow and tranquil story bascially no action scenes, even basically no drama, just immerse yourself into the world and enjoy for once.

the acting of the actors themselves is pretty good, they are beliavable and bring the emotions of the characters well onto the screen.

the sound is not to be underestimated either it fits the background well and i have more than once felt my emotions be influenced by it almost subconciously.

the replay value however is basically 0, while like after a good book, you will certainly miss the characters, there is no point in hanging on something that is past, kind of like the message of the story itself as well.

either way if you want a quiet evening to wind down, try it

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Soju Bomb is a entertaining show about idol trainees. Great storytelling.

Let me begin with the obvious, this show has been categorised as a
BL show. But it is anything but a BL show. I am currently in a 7 months ongoing BL content binge. I already watched Close friend season 1. And dropped season 2 somewhere.

But was lured in episode 3 after just one episode. And i don't regret this at all.

This show deserves more praise. The rating is ridiculous low.
The actors were very good, the story was good, funny and heartwarming. The camerawork, the Thai actors that also really could speak Korean. The storyline about the strict rules for trainees hoping to become a idol.

I was looking forward to each episode, i always viewed the intro, cause it where lovely visuals of the main actors with a great song, That i now just looked up, it is Highlight from B-rock and i have put it in my Spotify list.

This show has to be marketed as something else than a BL. We can look for instance at I will be your bloom from Japan, allso a series about a boyband, struggling to get a debut. With a bisexual character in it. The characters are not one dimensional.

Because this Soju bomb show is very good, great storytelling. and entertaining, but don't let people get fooled by thinking they are going to see a BL show.
It is really good drama with a happy end.

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Never give your full trust on someone

Lol this rating 6.8 is not related to this superb kdrama. I don't know why and what makes this drama a rating like that. For me personally it is a 9/10 overall, yes it can be 10, it is an awesome one and superb mastermind masterpiece kdrama, I really enjoy it. (the Italian accent 😅, he trys, looking like the accent of our mafia Mr Vincenzo 😎)
Some of the stories can relates to Reborn rich, big mouth, there is one I forgot its name.
The moral always show correctly, to never give your full trust to anybody, only focus on yourself.
Now I know why some were sorry for Kang hee joo, she is amazing and really pretty ✨,love her actings in all kdramas.
I won't say much but in the end after receiving the picture, and he was zooming it, and the main one concentrating and achieving successfully, after the drinks together.
They only concentrate forwards. (if you know what I willing to say about)
I really enjoy it how they plots and plans
How your mind should stay strong.
Kang!!!
Always wonderful and awesome works from the staffs, directors, actors and everyone.
Choi hee jin ✨✨ want to see more dramas of her, also main roles.

Nevertheless (not referring the kdrama 😅😅), the impossible heir, if you not yet watch it, you should! You will really enjoy it.
Don't look at this unrelated ratings to this kdrama.

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A beautiful journey to heal yourself thanks to music, brotherhood and 1990's vibe

This youth drama with a fantasy twist and set mainly in 1995 provides a great nostalgia throwback feeling as you follow a group of high schoolers starting a band together. The drama approaches in a wholesome way profound topics about friendship, family, as well as differences and disabilities that overall resonated well with me as the characters grow and learn. Though both romances were pretty cute, it is the brotherhood within the band and especially the father-son relationship that really got me invested.

In terms of storytelling, I truly enjoyed the set up and introduction. However, I cannot help to think that the conclusion would have deserved more time to reap properly all the rewards of the set-up done in the show. I was expecting the way it ended, there was a lot of satisfying emotional payoff but it could have gone deeper on the aftermath for all the characters following one of the major event happening in the last episode as well as regarding the evolution of the main protagonists and their relationships (especially regarding the female leads where it felt a bit short).

Overall, the quatuor of main characters work very well together, and I am pretty satisfied by the performances of the ensemble cast (especially for some of the more secondary characters). Choi Hyun Wook delivers a consistent and reliable performance in the role of the frontman of the band. I loved him in Weak Hero Class 1 and I love him as well here. The only little flaw I see is that his character tends to be very shouty. I think it is both bound to the role as well as to some of the directing. It is not at all detrimental to the story but it prevents some range in the acting as the character is always at 100%. Despite this, he (and his character) was clearly my favorite part of the show.

The filmmaking is pretty great with a colourful and boyish atmosphere perfectly fitting for the scenario. I love the soundtrack with its "older indie rock" feels. Every song done by the band is super catchy and the musical scenes each time delighted me.

I would recommend this to people looking for a very solid youth drama set in the 1990's. If you enjoyed movies like "Back to the Future" and dramas such as the "Reply" series, you will for sure immensely enjoy it! If you are a fan of musical genre shows, this one is also clearly made for you. I personnally really loved it despite some issues with the pacing of the script and the way I would have liked a bit more development on some elements, especially towards the ending.

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I liked it

Gaya Sa Pelikula is a good BL, I think, because it manages to show that it cares about gay people and their experiences, their stories. This isn't a series for a female, straight audience to thirst after and swoon, but rather the story of two people who could exist irl and have very real issues. It wants to send a message, and I appreciate it for that.

The acting is great. The two main actors are incredible together, they both show such vulnerabilty and emotion that I almost cried a couple of times. They make you feel for both of their characters. It also felt very natural when they were together, their interactions as a couple were relaxed and seemed improvised (idk if they were though). I'd also like to point out that the actor who plays Vlad has such beautiful, expressive eyes. That's it that's the tweet.
The secondary characters are good as well! Anna especially is my favorite, she's supportive and amazing but also has her own problems that she's dealing with. And the sister.. well she's quite messy tbh but she's funny regardless.
The music is on point. I'm adding a few of these songs to my playlist. The one for the dancing-in-the-living-room scene? Loved it
This series has an overall chill, cozy feeling about it - it's simple, it's natural, and most importantly it's real. Karl's fear is real. I liked that.

The reason why I'm giving it a 7 is one I'm happy to have seen other people bring up - the preachy-ness. This series wants to send a message, yes, but I think it's quite clumsy when doing so. There's no subliminal messaging, no subtext, no 'show-don't-tell' (not in general, at least). They don't let the audience come to those conclusions themselves - they force-feed them to you in case you didn't catch them. Vlad in particular got on my nerves at the beginning lmao, like "I don't want to be the plot device that triggers someone else's sexuality crisis" what is this?? Who talks like that?? I've said he sounds a little bit like a Twitter essayist and I stand by that.

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i looooove dramas about games.

'everyone loves me' is a good romance drama, there is a misunderstading that prolongs for a long time, but i don't think it makes the drama angst, just makes the quarrells happen for a long time. for me, it improved the development of the relationship better, since they had to go through all the stages of friendship. he ran after her, she accepted him as a friend, until they felt so much for each other that you could see the chemistry through their eyes.

i have two complaints about the drama in general
1. the ml has a situation with this mother that is never fixed (at least, its not shown)
2. the quality of the game they play together ir so weird... looks like cs but... cartoonish?

but if we ignore that, we have a healthy relationship, maybe more fights then we expect from a healthy one, but honestly bickering in relationships is so common i wish i could see this more often in dramas.

anyway, i looooooooove the actress that portraits the fl, she is so beautiful! i also really liked lin yi acting, but i feel like he is overrated? or maybe male actors are overrated in general and that just makes me more open and protective towards actresses. anyways. i liked the whole cast.

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Finally made it to the end

short review: much better than I expected and really liked it but I totally understand people not watching it for the platforming alone

longer review: before I hate on the platforming let's start with the actual content of the show :)

I really liked both leads, their personalities were convincing from the start and the short runtime made sure there weren't any unexplained personality changes. All the side characters did good too. I was surprised how much they plot they crammed into the runtime and I was always anticipating the next episode. The small cast did make it a bit easy to see who the culprit was going to be but I enjoyed watching the other characters figure it out.

...now, let's talk about the worst thing about this show: the platform

I had the willpower to not spend money on this but boy was it hard. 7 ads every day added up to only 4 episodes a day, so I think it took a bit over 2 weeks to watch it all, rough. I'm glad I continued watching because it's honestly worth the watch in my opinion but the platforming definitely brings it down and without it I'm certain the show could be way more popular, which is dissapointing for everyone involved.

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Highly Recommend

I went into the first watch of this series intrigued by the premise but not expecting too much.

I was hooked from the first episode, & loved the humour, pathos & world-building from the start.

12 episodes both feels like not enough and yet also so concisely & beautifully wrapped up that i feel conflicted about wanting a Season 2 because the initial series is so wonderfully told.

Won't share any spoilers - simply, the acting, production & cinematography is excellent.

More people should know about this show.

I'm currently on my 2nd rewatch of the series as I missed the characters and their stories, having completed the first watch a month ago.

Please do give this show a try, you won't be disappointed.

I love it.

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It was a great story

The only complaints I have are that the lead couple didn't really have much chemistry. I felt like the ml was holding the relationship together that the fl never really committed to the relationship. Like she had one foot in and one foot out. He seemed to be the only one initiating the relationship and it felt like she was going along with it.
I also didn't like her wardrobe. I understand they were going for a look where she is older than him but his mother dressed better than her. And the outfits his mother wore were more stylish than her marmish clothes.
And why didn't she actually try to get her son back? She said she would but when it came down to it, she just had visitations with him.

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