Reviews

Boys over Flowered was one of the first few Kdramas I watched before I got into as a true addiction. When I first was introduced to this drama I didn't want to watch it because it was a start off with a poor laundry matt owner's daughter who rescues a boy who is heavily bullied in the private school known as Shinwa High school, afforded by wealthy parents. There is a group of 4 boy who are form the F4 club together the rule the school with their money and good looks.

The show is basically define these young actor's career for future drama, recording artist career and in movies too. The actress as well has been in more dramas since but none as well-know or as successful as " Boy over Flowers." It's the famous , Gu Jun-pyo (Lee Min-ho) and , Yoon Ji-hoo (Kim Hyun-joong) and the girl is Geum Jan-di (Ku Hye-sun) is the " lucky" one to get a free scholarship to attend this exclusive school with the meanest teenagers around.

In the beginning if you have hate bullying and snobby people you'll be turn off by it. But hold up you need to keep watching because that is what happened to me. I stopped at the first episode or two then took back up when I got sick and had nothing left to do but watch a Kdrama with my hubby. It was worth all 20 something episodes of this beautiful drama unfold into a story about how snotty rich boys can turn into productive rich men who actually can love a normal girl. I have to say the actress was good but some times her character really annoyed me.

It's a great Kdrama for beginners who are just starting out introduced to this world called " Korean Dramas" Aka " Kdramas. It has love, comedy, serious parts, action and great sound track. You just need to give it a shot and stay with it. Anything with Lee min Ho in it is worth watching. I have to say he's gotten some plastic surgery since then though.

Leia Mais

The show started off promisingly - it kept to the 1-hour mark, the storytelling was zippy, and there was the right balance of humour and mystery.

But as the show went on, it became less enjoyable, due to the amount of airtime devoted to certain aspects of the stories and the flawed portrayal of the villains.

Cha Seung Won does such a good job - he's proven his comedic chops in Greatest Love. He still brings them to the table in this show, though not as much as in Greatest Love. He also shows that he is a very good dramatic actor. It's good to see that Lee Seung Gi is trying something different in this show, where his character is a lot darker and mysterious.

I'm really pleased that Go Ara is getting good roles after she did an excellent job on Answer Me 1994.

On a whole, still an enjoyable show.

Leia Mais

I wasn't intending to watch another version of Itazura na Kiss right after finishing one, but Netflix has a limited selection of dramas and this has been in my queue for years. I decided to give it a shot despite generally low reviews... and I liked it.

The story is the same as the last version I watched and it didn't really have anything different going on. I did think it was paced well. I liked that we got to see more of high school before they went to college. I also liked that we got to see some of what happened after a lot of romantic comedies end. It was a little rushed at the end but they did cram in what probably would have been the beginning of a second season if they did those.

What I didn't like was all the fantasy sequences, especially at the beginning. As it tapered off, the few here and there were more tolerable.

I also thought that some of the scenes felt contrived. They just didn't seem to follow a natural progression and it seemed like they said "We have to get this in here" and just made a scene to fit the situation without much thought to the flow.

I liked Jung So Min as Oh Ha Ni. I think it's almost unfair to talk about how stalkery she was because the story itself depends on her being a stalker. What I did like about her was that, despite the fact that she kept coming back, she had the sense to at least be angry and/or upset by the way Baek Seung Jo treated her.

Kim Hyun Joong as Baek Seung Jo wasn't wonderful but he wasn't awful. He was a lot less cold and detached and more deliberately mean. At times he was kind of intolerable and did remind me a little of Lee Shin from Goong (which makes sense seeing they have the same directors) but was not nearly as awful a person. He would do this thing, too, where he walked away and smiled that I thought was cute.

I didn't like second lead at all. The relationship between Ha Ni and Bong Joon Gu was almost non-existent until it became necessary for there to be one. It never seemed like Ha Ni considered him a close friend and I didn't feel any chemistry between the actors. There was way more chemistry between him and Ha Ni's friend, especially Joo Ri. And if Ha Ni was stalking Seung Jo, then Joon Gu was a step away from locking her in a basement.

I enjoyed a lot of the secondary cast. The mother was really fun to watch. I also liked Kyung Soo.

Most of the music didn't register with me. Netflix didn't show the intro so I didn't even hear that song until later. I did like the song from Bye Bye Sea and enjoyed the band playing at the break.

I enjoyed Playful Kiss. It's hard not to compare this one with the other I've seen (Love in Tokyo) because there are things I liked better in this one and things I liked better in the other. But in the end, I liked this one just a little bit more because I liked Ha Ni more. The embarrassing moments that Ha Ni had were less ridiculous and I didn't feel the need to turn it off during those times. I don't know that I'd watch it again, but I enjoyed it while I was watching it.

And on a side note, I love that they did the bear endings.

Leia Mais

This drama gave me major feels - ah, throughout the entire drama I had tears pouring out like crazy. It's a great drama.
Story: I've seen a couple like this one already but each one is new to me. Past's entwined and future's entwined - the description reminded me of Beyond the Clouds (2014) which also stars Yoon Kye Sang as the lead in almost the same predicament - which is one of the reasons this intrigued me.
Cast: I started this drama for Yoon Kye Sang and I have to say it was a good choice, he is a great actor that can really pull the emotions out of you. It was my first time seeing the leading lady though and it took me a couple of episodes for her to grow on me. There were a few episodes in the middle where I really hated the lead girl, she was so mean. The second leading characters were nice and there were only a few times I got mad at them.
Music: Pure perfection <3 I love OST's like this one has <3 Really reminded me of Swallow the Sun's OST
Re-watch value: 8/10 - I loved it and would watch it again sometime.

Leia Mais

Story: This drama explores the question "What happens if you meet your ex when you are in a steady relationship with another and your ex wants you back?" There is a lot of frustration as the audience is treated to the pendulum nature of the lead female's psyche. On one hand, she is tempted and on another she is committed to her current relationship. Shall she choose responsibility and commitment over passion and attraction? Who will she end up in the end? If you are curious, then watch this drama. This drama will leave you thinking about the reality of relationships and I am sure, for all of you who have been in relationships before (and ended it), you can relate to one or two things portrayed in this drama. I also like how between scenes, the main characters were filmed in an interview format to allow the audience to see the scenes and situations from the character's perspective; a bit of "she said" versus "he said" versus "they said" situation.

Acting/Cast: Mature and experienced actors and actresses. Side characters are very entertaining and they have their own little love stories to add into the story as well. I am not a fan of any of the actors or actresses in this drama, but I'll make a special mention for Eric (as Kang Tae Ha) and Yoon Hyun-Min (as Do Joon Ho). Eric showed a relaxed and natural form of acting. He had totally embraced and live the character he was given. One would even ask, is this his true character in real life that he is so comfortable and natural in portraying Kang Tae Ha? Yoon Hyun-Min as Dr. Do Joon Ho was hilarious, serious, smart and very much caught-in-between. Someone give this guy the main lead character in a romantic comedy already! I am sure he will do well in it!

Music: Nice but forget-able.

Rewatch value: This is a drama made to be watched once. You'll like it (but not adore it) and you'll move on from it. If you have nothing fantastic on your plate at the moment and do not mind watching romance drama depicting realistic struggles of dating relationships, you might want to make a time for this drama.

Leia Mais

Story: It's an intriguing story, despite the premise being somewhat predictive of how cliche it is. It wasn't developed at all, and I found it very difficult to believe due to its inconsistency. I think they spent more time on some parts than they should have, and that left the leads little time to develop any chemistry on screen. At its core, though, is a solid idea--one I would watch if it were expanded into a full-length drama.

Acting/Cast: Both leads are relatively new on the scene (in terms of experience, skill, popularity), but they both did pretty well. There were some parts by Gouriki (actress) that I found to be poor, but overall it was okay. Kiriyama (actor) is clearly the stronger actor between the two.

Music: I don't recall there being any[thing noteworthy].

Rewatch Value: I've mentioned in my other reviews that I very rarely rewatch, so I give everything a 5 unless I really do want to watch it again.

Overall: I'm not ecstatic about it, but I don't feel like I wasted an hour either. It was interesting, enjoyable, and it was cute. The acting wasn't amazing, necessarily, but I didn't expect it to be considering the original time slot and channel on which it aired. It was cute and average.

Leia Mais

I have to admit I started this drama because of Hyun Bin after watching Secret Garden And My Lovely Sam Soon so when I started this drama I had high expectations, well this did not measure up. The female lead was not very relatable and looked like an alien more an adopee returning to the country of her birth. Like most dramas the western characters were very unrealistic.

I really tried to enjoy the drama but it didn't really go anywhere, I wasn't sure who I was rooting for or if I wanted to root for any of them. It may have been ok if I didn't have Hyun Bin's other dramas to compare this too so if you are looking for something like Secret Garden this is not it

Leia Mais

This was my very first time watching a Korean drama as it was airing. And I am SO glad this was my first, because it was amazing. It was, however, torture waiting for new episodes every week. I would constantly check and refresh my Dramafever looking for the new episodes.

I have a love-hate relationship with every one of these characters. And you know what, I kind of love it. Characters are supposed to have us believing that they are real people. And what's more real than people who aren't always perfect?

Yeo Reum is just a girl, standing in front of TWO boys, asking them BOTH to love her. And she kind of falls for both of them. But have you seen them?! I mean, who wouldn't fall for them both? Tae Ha is her ex-boyfriend and first love who tries to win her back and can be a jerk, but he has his reasons. Ha Jin is her current boyfriend who lies to her way too often, but he has his reasons too. The chemistry between both couples is so believable, but the tortured love between Tae Ha and Yeo Reum is off the charts, as is the tension between rivals Tae Ha and Ha Jin. That's where a lot of the intensity of this show exists.

I've never seen characters in a show that feel as real and alive as these. Their actions and motivations are so fully realized. Before the final two episodes aired, I went back and watched the entire previous 14 episodes again. As I rewatched, I realized that even at the very beginning the characters reveal so much, sometimes just subconsciously, about why they're doing what they're doing. Things that I wouldn't and couldn't have noticed the first time around. That is a real victory for the writers. I really loved how we learned and explored little bits and pieces of each characters psyche in one episode, then learned a little more in the next and even more in the one after that.

I'm in awe of the realism displayed by each character. They each have weaknesses and strengths. They all have flaws, flaws... and more flaws. They might not behave they way you think they should or even how they themselves think they should, but that's what makes them feel so real. I almost refuse to believe that these individuals don't exist somewhere in Korea. It wouldn't surprise me at all if this was someone's real story. That would also have some parallels with what happens in the last episode.

Even though I loved that my dream OTP got together, I kind of wished that they hadn't thrown in the whole Magic Year cliche. I wanted things to resolve right away. It seems like the tension would have been higher if that had been the case. Because it seems like nearly everything that happened could have believably happened immediately. But I am very happy with how things turned out, for all the characters.

Also, could Joon Ho and Sol BE any cuter?! Gah. I love them so much. I would definitely be down for a spin-off starring those two.

This show is definitely one for the ages. There are so many moments that I'll never forget. But if I do forget any, I will have absolutely zero qualms about watching this again. And I am not usually a rewatcher. Only my favorites get rewatches. This will go down as an all-time fav for me. But for now... Moving on to watch Que Sera Sera!

Leia Mais

“This is the story of comebacks after comebacks by men who, in a company driven to bankruptcy, desperately kept on struggling and battling and continued to go after the ball until the very end”. This tagline is perfect to describe the drama overall but since that’s never enough to give this drama its right credit; allow me to state my humble thoughts about the best 2014 drama I saw thus far.

Coming from the same director, producer, channel, screenwriter and the one and only genius novelist Ikeido Jun behind Hanzawa Naoki; you’re bound to expect striking similarities such as the general structure, the business related events, the suspenseful tries to get out of financial troubles, the directing techniques and even the acting style. To many viewers, this may seem like TBS’s desperate tries to follow the footsteps of last year’s mega-hit drama and even re-incarnate its successful ratings. However, Roosevelt Game was able to clearly distinguish itself. This is definitely not another Hanzawa Naoki so do not misjudge this as a copycat.

Roosevelt Game is driven by two main threads: Business management and Baseball. At first glance, you would wonder if those two different themes are able coexist. I had my careful doubts about that matter but colour me surprised! They weren’t only in perfect harmony but they were also smartly written to complement each other which gave the drama a strange yet a very solid balance. The fascinating part is that Aoshima Seisakujo followed similar policies in both company management and sports which made things even more connected and delightful to follow.

This drama excels at building the thrills, you will find yourself at the edge of your seat countless of times. Not to mention the “What the… What the heck was that?” moments. It’s no surprise since this comes from the brilliant novelist Ikeido who’s known of his thought-provoking corporate scripts. The reason why I came to favour the business genre is their highly intriguing scriptwriting and witty dialogues, that part wasn’t any different in here, I was completely satisfied with the financial suspense they built even if the outcome was somewhat predictable. The sports’ part was equally exciting; I never get that feeling unless I am watching a real game or a sports anime. To think that they got me rooting for them out loud is beyond belief.

Acting wise, I have nothing but praise. I never thought that a star-studded cast like this one can go wrong in any way. I was already fascinated by Karasawa Toshiaki in another business oriented drama “Fumo Chitai” and ever since then, I have huge respect towards him. Once again, he drew me to his fearsome ability of turning into an intense actor when his character demands him to. His character was smart, firm and penetrating. Egushi Yosuke’s performance was too mystic; the way his character was written didn’t allow him to show his body language like he’s used to. However, he held an important cryptic character that always attracted attention. Another main character was Kudo Asuka, a young talent that held the realms of the baseball team. He had one memorable performance despite his obvious inferiority to his older seniors mentioned above.

The rest of the cast members were quite fitting for the drama which is nothing out of line for a great business production like this one. Tezuka Toru and Kagawa Teryuki were the better supporting actors. The latter amazed me as usual although I really wished that his talent was exploited further than that. I think this drama is unique due to the human relationships the writer inserted between his characters. The heart-warming events don’t imply that this drama was set in the heartless word of economy and business. That’s definitely a plus point that distinguishes Roosevelt Game from its fellow business oriented productions.

The cinematography was dazzling, literally. The bright colours used for this drama added vivid feeling to the usual sombre business atmosphere. The directing was definitely too similar to Hanzawa Naoki with those famed close-ups and captivating angles. One more thing, that OST was definitely a master’s stroke. That instrumental music was such a perfect fit for this drama’s theme.

Watch if:
-You like highly intriguing dramas.
-You like business/corporate.
-You’re looking for something similar to Hanzawa Naoki but beware, this is definitely different.
-You like sports dramas because baseball was a major part.

Do not watch if:
-You dislike the business theme.

Roosevelt Game is by far, the better written and executed drama of 2014. It contains a daring yet a very successful combination of the merciless world of business and the exciting world of sports. It should be enjoyed for its own benefits. Do yourself a favour, don’t misinterpret this as another Hanzawa Naoki.

Leia Mais

I mean after you read what is available of the manga, you wonder is there an drama or live adaptation! Well then you stumble upon this and at first there's many moment where you go WTF !! the Lead actress just scream too much, the guy playing Naoki is not even trying and the girl playing the the interference between Naoki and Kotoko just tries to much.
This adaptation was just very bad especially compare to the other show that came later on. I mean it's a good thing to watch on a rainy afternoon when you have totally realize that your computer is dead and that there's nothing worth to watch on T.V. Seriously it's good that they tried to be somewhat original but they just went totally out of the manga, the only thing that may be recognize is the characters name and just probably the fact that they family are somewhat the same too. I found this reviews that I wrote in 2010 and I was so struck by the fact that today in 2014 I still feel the same about this drama.

Leia Mais