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Lately my favorite part of the week has been watching the new episode of The Summer Hikaru Died and coming on here to read everyone's interpretation of this and that scene. It's making the whole experience much more enriching for me!

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BEOMGYU :: TAKE MY HALF

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Fréwaka

Movies watched in 2025

Fréwaka (2024, Ireland)

Director & Writer: Aislinn Clarke

Mini-review:

Folk horror can be a very fascinating subgenre when done well, and this particular entry is a solid one. I've seen people criticize its slow pacing, but I personally found it to be engaging from beginning to end. While I can admit that not much happens, the two central characters kept things interesting to me. I do wish the lore had been explained much more thoroughly, especially in relation to the town and the people, but I did enjoy the veil of mystery that surrounds everything. So yeah, Fréwaka is worth a watch for those looking for a folk horror story set in Ireland.

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HUENINGKAI :: DANCE WITH YOU

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Come True

Movies watched in 2025

Come True (2020, Canada)

Director & Writer: Anthony Scott Burns

Mini-review:

I honestly struggle to see the point of this movie. The visuals were certainly interesting and the cast did a great job, but I felt like the plot didn't really go anywhere, and none of the characters were particularly engaging, not to mention the icky romance. While there are many fascinating ideas thrown around, the film doesn't delve deeper into any of them, and the end result is ambitious but ineffective. I guess this type of story would have benefitted from a limited series format or something like that. As it is, Come True is a disappointing piece of oneiric horror.

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TAEHYUN ☆ BIRD OF NIGHT

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Heavenly Delusion

TV Shows/Dramas watched in 2025

Heavenly Delusion (2023, Japan)

Director: Hirotaka Mori

Writer: Makoto Fukami (based on the manga by Masakazu Ishiguro)

Mini-review:

As a big fan of speculative fiction, this pretty much ticked all the right boxes for me. Its two main plot threads are not that groundbreaking, but putting them together is what makes this particular take so engrossing. I must admit I was a bit more invested in the Heaven storyline (it reminded me a lot of From the New World, which I loved back in the day), but Maru and Kiruko were more than charming enough to keep me interested in the post-apocalyptic setting too. This peculiar conjunction of stories allows the show to explore a lot of fascinating themes like gender and social identity, aided by a peculiar sense of humor that compensates for this world's inherent bleakness. However, there was one particular twist in the last two episodes that felt completely unnecessary; I just hate when that sort of thing is used as character development, and it made the whole show lose points in my eyes. Still, the final cliffhanger is exciting enough for me to return for a second season of Heavenly Delusion, if it ever happens.

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SOOBIN :: SUNDAY DRIVER

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The new Chihayafuru drama is finally on Netflix and it's so so good! I was really looking forward to it, since the movie trilogy is easily my favorite manga live-action adaptation, and so far this TV sequel/spin-off is living up to it. The essence of the original is there, thanks to the returning cast and cameos, but the new characters are all different enough for it not to feel like a rehash. And the young cast is fantastic too! Also, the cinematography is way above the usual quality you find in Japanese dramas, maybe because the team behind the movies is involved in the production. Anyway, I can't wait to see more!

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YEONJUN :: GHOST GIRL

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Adults

TV Shows/Dramas watched in 2025

Adults (2025, USA)

Creators: Ben Kronengold and Rebecca Shaw

Mini-review:

I feel like it's been forever since I last watched a sitcom about a bunch of unhinged twentysomethings, and this one was pretty good, actually. It doesn't take off right away, but each episode is better than the previous one, and it got quite a few belly laughs and gasps out of me. Somehow, it manages to combine politically correct topics with absolutely incorrect humor. Sometimes it takes the jokes a bit too far, but overall, it works surprisingly well. The cast members are committed to their roles, and while the chemistry is not the best I've ever seen, it serves its purpose. I'm not sure I'll like the direction that ending is hinting at, but I do hope we get more episodes of Adults.

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The Marching Band (En Fanfare)

Movies watched in 2025

The Marching Band (En Fanfare) (2024, France)

Director: Emmanuel Courcol

Writers: Emmanuel Courcol, Irène Muscari, Oriane Bonduel and Marianne Tomersy

Mini-review:

I'm always in for a good ol' crowd-pleaser, but I think maybe this one was a tad too overhyped. I kept hearing how amazing it was, and... for me it was just OK. All the elements were more than solid enough, but I felt like things happened way too fast, and the editing made the pace feel somewhat rushed. Still, the cast does a great job (especially the two leads), and the ending did manage to tug at my heartstrings. So yeah, The Marching Band works as an uplifting movie about brotherhood and music, but don't go in with super high expectations like I did.

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It's finally time for a new episode of The Summer Hikaru Died and, first of all, those twenty minutes flew by. I need more! 😭 Also, we're really starting to get into the lore now, and it seems like the show will embrace the horror side of the story even more. I truly can't help but feel like this anime was made specifically for me 😳

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love telling people I'm not on social media as if it's not 98% of my waking hours. well I'm not on social media in a way that you'd recognize

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Happyend (2024)

Dir. Neo Sora

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Happyend

Movies watched in 2025

Happyend (2024, Japan/USA)

Director & Writer: Neo Sora

Mini-review:

Sometimes you come across an indie movie and you just know everyone involved is gonna be big. Well, this is one of those cases. Neo Sora comes onto the film scene with an ambitious, confident and self-assured narrative debut. His visual style runs circles around many experienced filmmakers, and his script portrays Japanese youth with a realism that you won't find in mainstream cinema. He's certainly aided by a bunch of super charismatic (and diverse) newcomers, whose naturalistic acting makes the characters feel like actual teenagers. The softly dystopian setting is the perfect approach for the story's timely themes, which range from class and xenophobia to authoritarianism. I'll admit the movie doesn't explore these topics as deeply as it could (mainly because of the length), but it still gives you much food for thought. To sum up, Happyend is an impressively ambitious coming-of-age film that feels like a breath of fresh air.

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A Calm Sea and Beautiful Days with You

TV Shows/Dramas watched in 2025

A Calm Sea and Beautiful Days with You (2025, Japan)

Directors: Shin Hirano and Tomonobu Moriwaki

Writer: Yoko Izumisawa (based on the manga by Hachi Nishiga)

Mini-review:

It's been a long time since I watched an old-school romance like this one, and I liked it way more than I expected! Mainly because it's really, really funny. I know I'm in the minority, but I've always enjoyed tropes like misunderstandings and miscommunication, and this drama plays them for laughs in the right ways. Also, the sweetness of it all makes up for the outdated character tropes (and at the end of the day, they suit the represented period). At first I thought both leads were somewhat miscast, but it didn't take long for them to convince me with their amazing chemistry. My biggest complaint is that the sets and costumes looked rather low-budget, so the period setting didn't feel very well-realized. Still, A Calm Sea and Beautiful Days with You should delight fans of gentle period romances.