Strong murder plot that is hampered by terrible pacing and lackluster acting.

It's your typical manga turned Jdrama adaptation. Hire actors where specs trump acting capability. What starts off strong as a murder revenge plot quickly turns sour due to terrible pacing. It was actually good in the first half, especially around episode 4 or 5 or so, but then becomes mediocre due to a shoehorned love triangle and a pregnancy. It's supposed to be romance but there was no chemistry at all between the leads. The female lead was marginally better than her male lead who wears a poker face the whole time. I felt nothing when they broke up. On the one hand, it was supposed to be a murder mystery but on the hand, it was a bad soap opera. The ending was at least ok. I ended up caring more for Tsubaki's mom than his whole relationship with Nao.

The gist of drama is Hanaoka Nao goes undercover under a false alias and a fake marriage contract with her childhood crush Takatsuki Tsubaki at the Kogetsuan, the place where her mother last worked. Her mom was wrongly accused of a crime she didn't commit. Nao wants to undercover what really happened to the late heir to Kogetsuan and why and how he was killed and ultimately salvage her mother's name. From there, the pacing just falls apart. On paper, the plot sounds great.

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The 1930s storyline overshadowed the mediocre present narrative

Was it worth enduring 14 episodes? I'm not sure. The middle was so bad. This is a time travel drama that went on for much longer than necessary. If it shaved off maybe 8 episodes, it would have been much better. They took a really good plotline, the 1930s narrative and weave elements of it into the present. That's where it failed. I was more invested in the past storyline than the present.

In terms of rewatch value, I wouldn't be able to do it. I found the first two or three episodes strong and consistent, but then the female lead stops being the badass shooter she is, just so she can became a damsal in distress, which makes no logical or narrative sense at all. She should be carrying guns in her pocket like she does in the beginning.

This starts off as your typical romcom with a famous writer who experiences writer's slump. He receives an old typewriter from the 1930s in Chicago and from there meets two people, a fangirl and a guy who becomes his ghostwriter. They both end up starting a novel about freedom fighters who fought for independence from Japan in the 1930s. When all three meet, they remember their past lives as freedom fighters. It's a romance, fantasy, and historical drama. If you love strong narratives that's rooted in history and stories about friendships that transcend time, then I highly recommend this. I wasn't really hooked on the story until the final two episodes. That really sealed it for me, hence why the highly rated reviews. It really had the best ending, which is rare in kdramas and tv in general. Not even Sky Castle had a good finale. I was about to drop it around episode 10. I wish I had skipped all the way to episodes 15 and 16 instead of enduring the terrible present subplot. It was that bad.

I had no interest from the melodrama of Han Se Joo's adopted family. It was honestly hard to relate to the characters midpoint.

There was the concrete narrative of our gang's lives from the 1930's, but too much was spent meandering in the present.Tonally it was pretty all over the place. It tried to be serious, then jumped to being funny.

It should have been 8-10 episodes shorter. Pacing was horrendous until the final two episodes. That's where the praise is coming from.

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Slow but poignant. There are moments that truly shine while others hamper the pacing.

I am rewatching the finale. It started off really well in the first two episodes. It's relatable, the gang's friendship. Who hasn't gone out to dinner with your friends only to have your friend's mom phone in and ask how you've been?

After that, I found myself fast-forwarding scenes involving one of the resident's parents and Ik-jun's sister's romance and the endless makbang scenes. The romance I wasn't interested. It's really the friendship, the comedic timing between them all and that epic karaoke scene with Jun Wan belting out "I Believe!" Those moments really shined.

I didn't see season 2. This was very slowly paced. This is one of those dramas that leaves an impression on you once you take your time with it. The finale was probably the best episodes of this season. Yes it was predictable, but it was poignant. It tackled life, or rather lives that end in the hospital. The guilt and the weight of responsibility our gang faces when lives can't be saved.

Song Hwa talks about a patient she had. She remembers her name, her face, everything. She stayed with her. But she still passed. "I felt it was my fault she died. I beat myself up for months." It's that scene I rewatch over and over. I never see guilt being addressed when there is a passing.

The best part of the series was maybe the first two episodes and the last episode. There isn't really a plot. It's rather episodic until the finale and the last couple of episodes which tied everything together. It’s a medical drama that focuses on the medical side of working in a hospital.

The romance to me was forgettable. The friendship shined and the how the residents had to tackle some heartbreaking cases where their patients didn't make it.

I love romance and enjoy rom-coms but Ik-Jun and Song Hwa to me felt cringe and forced. Song Hwa is an epic female lead and for her to suddenly rekindle her crush from eons ago? Ik-Jun was married this whole time and for him to suddenly pursue Song Hwa? Talk about forced. I liked it better when their relationship was ambiguous. Instead of going on that date, Ik-Jun waits with her at the hospital. Because this was a rare drama where friendship matters. This is rare, especially with people in their 30s-40s.

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There's depth. This ain't your shallow, fluffy shoujo.

Ever grew up closely with someone in your childhood, only to drift apart once you grow older? I feel we've all had that happen.

The beginning half is rather slow and rocky. It starts off episodic, introducing the cold dynamic between Minato and Toru. But once you keep watching, it becomes a lot better. Minato basically ends up dressing as her high school self, "Mina," and bumps into Toru on the street. And from there, Toru asks her out because she looks like his first love.

The story becomes a lot deeper than your basic shoujo/josei. It's supposed to be cringey because Minato is pretending to be someone else. Once Mintato accidentally dates Toru, she learns there's more to Toru and she starts examining what she's been missing out on their relationship. They're step siblings that basically don't get along. While she's with him as Mina, she starts grieving over what she could have had with him: he could have actually been in her life instead of her pushing him away. At the beginning, she even tells Toru to not talk to her while they're attending the same college. As the story progresses, you learn that Toru is the reason why she's a germaphobe and why she incessantly cleans.

I found that to be a lot more interesting. She met Toru as a child but once they grew up, they drifted apart. She basically thinks that Toru doesn't like her, not even as a person. I can feel the deep longing Toru had for Minato. It came across as purer. My heart did skip a beat. The ending felt a lot more romantic; I was so turned off by the way the manga handled the ending.

The manga is funnier than the movie, but I'm glad the story was streamlined, without taking anything away. It takes volumes for Toru to find out she's pretending to be Minato, whereas in the movie, Toru has a brain. The love triangle didn't drag out as long as it did in the manga. And I'm glad that Minato put down a lot of boundaries while she was dating Toru as Mina. The manga was a lot more graphic in the romance scenes, and I found that to be too much to handle. Whereas the manga didn't sell me on their relationship, the movie did.

I wished there was your classic love confession. I get that Minato's been wanting to know what Toru really thinks of her. They basically apologize to one other, explaining their feelings: how they both thought they had hated each other, which makes sense. But where was the love confession? We get it on Toru's end, that he's been in love with her since they met. But we didn't really get that on Minato's end. Because that is kinda a big bomb to drop, when she's assumed he's hated her all this time! Toru assuming that she's ok with it. But what if she wasn't ok with that???

Toru's the better love rival than her "so called male friend" who forced her to go to a hotel with him.

My verdict: skip the manga and stick to the movie. The manga did better in the beginning chapters, but the movie made the story a lot more concise and tolerable.

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Plus sized chick is actually a love interest for once.

It was alright. Not great but not bad either. I thought the first few episodes were done well. There was a good mix of dark humor, comedy, and the fact that the female lead, her 40's self was actually in the episodes!! The mother daughter scenes actually made me tear up.
But then the last couple of episodes, she has to conveniently transform and stay in her 20's Lindsay Lohan look-a-like self and the episodes tried shoehorning that dreaded love triangle, which wasn't even a love triangle!

It ended good, at least. But the journey was frankly a bumpy ride. At some point, in the middle there was just too much melodrama, hyung drama that came outta nowhere, the thoughts who were the fangirls, that horrid love triangle. And how many times must Kim Tae Joon, the villian in this story, keep doing the craziest things?! It ends up being rather predictable.

The drama tried doing a lot just to stretch out the plot but ends up flat. Like there were too many episodes. I ended up fast forwarding a lot just to get to the scenes with Min Jae Hee, who is hello the main character.

As someone who has struggled in the past with weight, I could relate. Min Jae Hee, your housewife, tries to end her existence but receives a second chance to relive her life: a magical perfume. Think of it like a Freaky Friday, with her self. With a whiff of her perfume, she can become her twenty year old self, where she honestly looked like Lindsay Lohan. Jae Hee used to be skinnier when she was training to be a model before quitting her dream, after she got pregnant and got married to Kim Tae Joon.

For those looking for some well grounded entertainment that's actually real and relatable, look no further.
The dude who plays Seo Do had dynamic. The actress who plays Min Jae Hee could make me laugh and cry; she's really good. Seo Do's lackey killed it in every scene.

As an average woman, yes it hits all the same kdrama cliches, like your youngish CEO; but this is the first kdrama I've seen where the lead is actually a plus-sized, healthy woman. What was disappointing in the last couple of episodes was that she was barely in it.

All and all, it wasn't your Sky Castle. It was above average. I just found myself fast forwarding. It was just too long. Would I recommend it?
Still yes because the scenes were Min Jae Hee confronts her trauma and low self esteem were honestly moving. I just wished that she, the actual main character, not her Freaky Friday self, had shown up more at the end. At least it ended well.

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A Kdrama if it were Boys Love

The format of this drama is exactly like that of an office romance kdrama if it were a boys love. This follows the same bland setting, some office with the exact cubicles. Yes there has to be two couples, the main couple and the side couple.

I actually liked maybe the first two episodes, especially the pilot. It started off grounded. He wakes up and realizes when he comes into physical contact with another person, he is able to read their thoughts. I wished it'd take the double edged sword further. When he bumps into strangers in a crowded street, and when he bumps into his coworker who frankly thinks Adachi is nice because he does his work for him, but looks grumpy again. Or that onigiri street vendor who says Mayo onigiri again.

I actually forget how good the pilot was.

Then I realized how shallow and underdeveloped the characters are. The pilot relied on comedy, but then it gets stale. I actually found the pacing to be sluggish. By episode 6 I still know nothing about the characters. All I know is Kurosawa only thinks about Adachi when they are together and how his actions may affect Adachi. I mean having a love interest who is consenting and respectful is hardly plot or characterization. Hello anyone seen Banana Fish? Adachi I still know nothing about, other than he likes Kurosawa back. The plot solely relies on the will-they-wont-they that frankly gets dragged out too long for the majority of the series. I mean Adachi knows Kurosawa likes him from the pilot.

There isn't a plot. I wished that it'd at least take advantage of the comedy where whenever Adachi touched someone's hand, he realizes they were secretly in love with him. Like I wish it'd take the fantasy elements even further.

I couldn't relate to any of the characters. I could relate maybe just to the pilot where when he first hears the thoughts of strangers.

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Fans of the anime will enjoy this

This is based off the popular Boys Love manga and the anime. Love Stage is about two guys who reunite after starring in a wedding themed commercial (CM) 10 years ago. Ryoma falls for his co-star on set whom he thought was a girl when he was a child. Ryoma is now a popular actor. Izumi comes from a line of entertainers: his mom is an hallyu actress, his dad an entertainer, and his older brother the lead singer of a band. 10 years later, Ryoma requests the exact cast to be apart of the new CM. The only change I wish they didn't make was Izumi didn't wear a wedding dress. That was the best part of the anime/manga because that's the whole point. Ryoma thinks that Izumi was a girl this whole time, even when they act together in their Happy Wedding CM.

Other than that, I am thankful they kept it very PG. They removed the rapey scenes. I have seen the anime and the OVA and I am glad they removed them and kept the best parts of the plot, which is where Ryoma comes to terms that his childhood crush who encouraged him in his acting career is actually a guy. The love story is really sweet, albeit weak facial expressions from Izumi's actor. He reunites with Izumi and after making a mistake, tries to become his friend and helps him in his manga. He wants to help him like Izumi did when they were starring in that CM 10 years ago. He encourages Izumi with his manga and I found that really sweet. They turned a source material that is considered yaoi due to suggestive scenes and made it more accessible for a wider audience. I only wished it was longer and we got to see Izumi pursue acting. Believe me, it starts off really cringey but it gets much better as it goes on.

In Japan, or in Asian countries, for a popular actor to come out as gay is essentially career suicide. So for the ending to nonchalantly be accepting of that is actually revolutionary. I wished the ending went on for longer than it did. Boys Love usually caters to Fujoshis, or women, but what sets Love Stage apart is how well written its narrative is. The mangaka did write the screenplay for the movie.

I only wished that the on set architecture was better. I wished that Izumi's house looked more glamorous. I wasn't convinced that his well established family would be living in what looks like an average suburban house. It should have been tacky and adorned with tacky expensive furniture. Even Ryoma's apartment should have looked fancier if he's considered a popular actor. I don't remember the anime much, but even the settings in the anime looked more glamorous than the shoddy housing in this movie.

I enjoyed it more than the anime. The anime's art style I wasn't a fan of and I prefer that they toned down the scenes and made it more consentual. This is coming from someone who hates Jdramas. I typically gravitate more to American TV and Kdramas. Better than any of Hirokazu Kore-eda's movies. Look I'm familiar with Japanese cinema and this was a solid good movie.

The acting is Jdrama quality and the production level was slightly higher than your typical Jdrama. These guys both acted better than what you see in a Jdrama. Izumi's actor looked the part but wasn't as good as Ryoma's actor. He was hilarious.

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An ending can make or break a drama

The ending broke it. I wasted my time watching this queer baiting travesty. If Korea needs the most straight ending possible, then give me a reason to root for the straight couple. They could have done more to make So Yong likeable and grateful.

I regret watching all of it.

There wasn't much of a plot. You watched it for Bong Hwan and his crazy antics as So Bong. Bong Hwan was the real star of the show. I'm still bitter about the ending. It was queer baiting at its worst. All the development and the progress for what so the main character is usurped last minute to have the most straight ending possible? I wouldn't have minded had Bong Hwan been reunited with the reincarnation of the king.

It was fresh. I came in thinking this was an inclusive drama where gender isn’t important and that love could be inclusive. It started off bumpy where I found the acting to be too overreactive for my taste. But it grew on me. It had everything you wanted out of a kdrama: love triangles, crazy in-laws, a love story, and a strong cast. It was refreshing having a love story starring a dude. Again I don’t see what’s taboo or revolutionary about that. Bong Hwan who initially cared about escaping back to his present grew to care and love the people in his life as So Bong. He was able to earn his place thanks to him being himself and utilizing his skills as a chef. He even formed his own squad. But the main crux of the story is how the king falls for him. CJ and him start as enemies but become friends and eventually lovers. You watch as So Bong earns CJ’s trust. Their love story was essential to the plot. I was engrossed.

But all the character development and character consistency is thrown out the window in the last forty minutes. Imagine where the main character is usurped last minute due to plot convenience. The writing is overall horrific. It was never established but So Yong is Bong Hwan’s past life. Otherwise why would So Yong pass out and loose pulse because Bong Hwan wakes up in episode 7-8? Again inconsistent writing.

All that hard work and character development was gone. Bong Hwan is barely redeemed or in the picture in the finale when he was the real hero. So Yong who has stayed dead for 19 episodes swoops in, doesn’t even thank Bong Hwan, and takes credit for doing nothing. So Yong literally utters: “He’s gone.” B**** Where were you!? Why didn’t you take a bullet for your man? Why didn’t you bury Byeong In yourself?

This isn’t an episodic drama by any means. Meaning an ending will make or break the drama. It was so bad. I can’t rewatch it.

Total waste of my time.

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