#i felt their chemistry more than the male lead with the female lead (⁠ ⁠；⁠∀⁠；⁠)

[awallflowerdraws]

when you crash your crushes' wedding in a black ensemble with red undertones (⁠・⁠∀⁠・⁠) like calm down sir

[acourtofthought]

Is Gwynriel a crackship?

The characters don't have chemistry -

Gwyn threw Azriel a withering stare as she strode past him. “See you tomorrow, Shadowsinger,” she tossed over a shoulder.

Az stared after her, brows high with amusement.

Azriel couldn't help his soft chuckle.

Pure amusement glittered in her stare.

He offered her a crooked smile.

Gwyn asked Az, her teal eyes bright, “What do we get if we finish the course?”

Az’s shadows danced around him. “Since there’s no chance in hell any of you will finish the course, we didn’t bother to get a prize.”

Boos sounded. Gwyn lifted her chin in challenge. “We look forward to proving you wrong.”

"I blame Cassian for this. He's too busy making eyes at Nesta to notice such mistakes these days."

Azriel laughed. "I'll give you that".

Gwyn smiled broadly. "Thank you".

Azriel dipped his head in sketch of a bow, something restless settling in him.

Cassian glanced over at Az, but his attention was fixed on the young priestess, admiration and quiet encouragement shining from his face.

The characters never interact -

Azriel had winnowed her and Cassian here after training, but hadn’t lingered. Apparently, Gwyn wanted him to go over dagger handling, so he’d left them with a promise to return in an hour.

"You're turning the blade a fraction as it comes parallel to the ground," Azriel explained, drawing his Illyrian blade from down his back. "Watch." He slowly demonstrated, rotating his wrist where she did. "You see how you open it right here?" He corrected his position. "Keep your wrist like that. The blade is an extension of your arm."

And when Gwyn reached the finish line, bloody and panting and grinning so wildly her teal eyes glowed like a sunlit sea, she only extended her battered hand to Azriel. “Well?” “You already have your prize,” Azriel said simply. “You just passed the Blood Rite Qualifier. Congratulations.” Gwyn gaped. Nesta and Emerie halted. But Gwyn said to him, “That was why you invited them?”

Nesta asked Gwyn, “But it seemed like you didn’t know what we were doing.” “Cassian and Azriel warned me that we’d be watched by males today, but didn’t specify why.

“The courses?” Gwyn asked. “Different routes,” Azriel said, “from various Qualifiers over the centuries.”

Succeeding in the Blood Rite didn’t mean the training stopped. No, after she and her friends told Cassian and Azriel most of the details of their ordeal, the two commanders had compiled a long list of mistakes that the three of them had made that needed to be corrected, and the others wanted to learn from them, too. So they would keep training, until they were all well and truly Valkyries.

I think it's pretty evident that not only do Gwyn and Az interact but in a short period of time their interactions have already turned playful and competitive.

Certain groups in this fandom believe chemistry only equals sexual chemistry but people in real lasting relationships realize that chemistry is more than that. Sexual attraction can fade but emotional chemistry is what leads to a relationships staying power.

Emotional chemistry is what makes a relationship special and different from other relationships.

Az has had hunger for both Mor and Elain. He's felt protective of both Mor and Elain, arguing against them doing anything dangerous. He's questioned why both Mor and Elain were not his mates and felt he would taint both Mor and Elain. Really, there's nothing all that special between the way he treats the pair of them. Sure, he never lent anyone TT but he also never sat out of battle after Mor begged and pleaded. He never had a recently turned fae female in need of a weapon while the female he loved for centuries asked him not to fight.

In an SJM romance, her endgame pairings have both sexual and emotional chemistry but the sexual side of things doesn't always happen right away. For example, Rowan and Aelin didn't have sexual chemistry for quite a while. They disliked one another at first, which eventually led to friendship, which eventually built to sexual chemistry.

A crackship would be Gwyn and Tarquin who have never met. But Gwyn being flirtatious towards Az, Az being amused by Gwyn, Az showing admiration for Gwyn, Az believing in Gwyns ability to make it through the Rite, Az feeling something spark in his chest at the thought of her happiness, Az imaging her teal eyes lighting up, Gwyn being the only one his shadows dance for (both in SF and the POV), knowing that not only has Az already spent time interacting alone with Gwyn and time with her during training but that he and Cassian are going to be continuing her training, we can safely say Az and Gwyn are not a crackship. We know Gwyn likes males as she said her chance to lie with a male for her first time was taken from her and she did not show any fear being with Az alone in the dark in the middle of the night. So it is not "ridiculous" to think that he could easily be someone she'd place her trust in when she decides she's ready to take the next steps in exploring her sexuality (something SJM will decide she's ready for and not petty readers within the fandom).

And the fact that he treats Gwyn differently than the way he's acted towards Mor and Elain, the fact that SJM had Gwyn and Gwyn alone spark something in his chest, are possible clues that their chemistry is the real kind and not the fleeting kind that sexual chemistry sometimes is when it's missing the other things that are important to a lasting relationship.

[friendlynbhddevil]

@queenbeyondthejudge I'm posting the screenshots of your reblog here so we can start afresh because it was getting too longgg, I hope that's okayy :D (If anyone chances upon this lovely exchange, read this for context)

Yesss Jin will be finally bringing in the anti-delulu energy that we need more than ever🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️Ahh unfortunately no :') My end sem exams are going on right now. I'm going to watch everything after the exams are over😭

I have a pretty similar story too. I remember listening to Forever Rain when I was completely new to the whole thing and I felt seen. I'm so glad I found them💜 I think it was Yoongi who once said that "you don't find us, we find you when the time's right."

🥹🥹💜💜thank youuu. I have had few dreams. But getting to see them one day drives me the most.

Jin would absolutely nail any role he gets!! And he can sing his own OST sooo he's a perfect male lead😌😌 Yesss I have heard about Hwarang!! It wasn't really my thing but I have watched the scenes that he is in and damnnn he needs to do more dramas. I feel like he could do serious and intense roles now. He has that face. I don't know how else to describe it. (Someone said that Tae likes tragic roles because in Hwarang he got killed, in the HYYH era he jumped, in the FRI(END)S mv he gets hit by the car💀💀😭😭)

YES YES 😭😭💖 so adorableee. I think I know the show you're referring to because in one of the gifsets that I saw here, he's tapping the hood of a car that looks exactly like Baby. The name of the show is Tracker. And I'm very very tempted to watch it for him-

Eve and Maze- 😭😭😭💜💜 thank you for saying that, you're too sweet. I'll try to incorporate all those points *salutes*

I feel like they would bicker and make up while the person they caught is literally tied to a chair in front of them. And the person would be like "huh???"

Lee Dong Wook- It's like he's aging backwards!! Sameee they had insane chemistry. They just fit so well and yet, at first glance no one would think of putting them together. I hope they make a season 2 of Bad and Crazy😭 (and let the female lead be just friends with him)

THAT IS SUCH A GREAT IDEA

I can imagine it so vividly. Dean being all serious and Damon just mocking him💀💀💀ooo the temperrr, the tension, the dramaaa

I will definitely let you know!!💖💖 I might even start discussing about it as I'm watching the shows because I'd be hyped upp

[boseobrien]

I understand if bapa shippers would have preferred it if Bose and Chapa ended up together because, hey, that's just them seeing "potential." Bapa is their headcanon. However, what bapa shippers shouldn't do is dis-credit bomika by still saying that their scenes were platonic because at the end of the day, the writers canonically made their scenes to go beyond friendship and when bomika shippers said that their scenes are meant to be romantic they are were right because that's what it was. I might even understood bapa shippers interpreting bapa as something romantic IF the writer had decided way later in the series that they wanted to make Bose and Mika a couple, because before than the writers didn't know who they would want to pair together, but that's not the case. The writers knew from the very start that they wanted to make Bose and Mika a couple, so that means that all those Bapa scene's their shippers claim were romantic were not written that way which means the character's Bose and Chapa never felt that way, and Havan and Luca weren't portraying it that way so it's something completely in ther head, they were not robbed because they never had anything in the bank to begin with. Bose and Mika were written to be paired together, and if Bapa shippers don't see the chemistry, that's them. Not every ship in the world has chemistry for everyone. (Bomika does) but they shouldn't deny that Mika and Bose don't make sense when the whole purpose of their dynamic is that they have a slow burn relationship that not even the characters have fully unlocked yet because the show ended. This whole Bomika/Bapa ship war isn't even a war because Bomika (in the show and in the fandom) was never in competition with Bapa because Bapa doesn't exist was not even a consideration in the show. It's just bitter and toxic Bapa fans who want their reality to be real so bad that they take their insecurities and jealously out on the real endgame of the show because they always knew that Bomika was more than platonic.

Also, Bomika is/ was going to be a representation of interracial romance in childern shows. It was going to show young kids that you anyone can end up together no matter your race or background because love is love. ("But Chapa was poc." Most of you see her as white, point blank period. Which isn't that odd because Havan is white passing) in most Nickelodeon or Disney shows back in the day, couples who ended up together are 98% of the time the we're the same race which is was mainly White. Nickelodeon has only two main endgames that were BWWM, and they we're both Keke Palmer from years ago. Now more recently, networks are starting to branch out with this BWWM rep and you can tell how racist and people who have micro aggression towards these minorities are uncomfortable seeing white male leads in romantic relationships with their other black female leads, and it's really showing peoples true colors from all fandoms, like the Little Mermaid, Percy Jackson, Titans, Spiderman, and etc. Bapa shippers don't seem to understand that their public hate for Bomika is actually rooted in something deeper and need to take a long, hard look at themselves in the mirror.

Bapa is an opinion, a headcanon that isn't harmful if you view it that way because it will never, ever, happen.

"Bomika is real" or "Bomika is endgame" or "Bomika is canon." Is not an opinion anymore, It's a fact.

[survivalistghost]

2023 kdrama list

list of the kdramas i watched and loved in 2023

obviously this is quite late but to those who want to start a kdrama, this is it.

#10 - soundtrack #2

there is such a comfort in the soundtrack series. even soundtrack #1 was so good, but this new instalment, truly works on the og kdrama tropes. lovers to exes to accidental 'fate' encounter to forced proximity to lovers again. puppy dog male lead, angsty female lead, jealousy, wholesome second lead, it's got it all. and ofc, music.

#9 - king the land

many people did not like this drama. honestly, if you're watching a kdrama that is romance and comedy then why would be angry that it had romance and comedy. again, a true example of a classic kdrama, rich ceo guy with hardworking girl, mix in some trauma and employee-employer drama, and this is the perfect clichéd drama.

#8 - see you in my 19th life

honestly i just like watching ahn bo hyun. he is such a pretty man. storyline-wise, i feel like they did a lot of stuff, but the ending honestly disappointed me. shin hye sun, as usual, love the woman, what an actor, the second leads also did not disappoint, loved them all.

#7 - crash course in romance

such a heartwarming drama. choi chiyeol with the temperament of a wet cat, the stress of studies in all asian countries, not just korea. all the romances were so cute (barring the best friend and brother). one thing they could have done better was cast a younger actress for the female lead. even this love triangle was so cute and fun.

#6 - my demon

song kang and kim yoo jung really killed it with the chemistry. i mean, forget everything else, i'll just take 16 episodes of them hanging out. even behind the scenes reels will work. the plot was pretty solid, felt like a remake of doom at your service. song kang does a wonderful job at being both goofy and serious, and kim yoo jung did so good at the angsty ceo.

#5 - the good bad mother

am i surprised this ended up higher than my demon? yes. this was such a good show, the past and present layered together so beautifully. the villains seemed like actual villains, but you weren't sure who to hate until the last episode. really shows some aspects of motherhood through both the eyes of the kids and mothers. had a cute little romance as well.

#4 - the worst of evil

ji chang wook and wi ha jun. need i say more? i have said it once, and i'll say it again - so few do action like koreans do. i mean, vincenzo, my name, midnight runners, and now this, such action masterpieces.

#3 - daily dose of sunshine

park bo young wa sso cute in this one. i miss small kdramas with intense plots. mental illnesses were dealt with very well in this one. the romance was so cute, and chang ryul, my baby, i missed him so much.

#2 - alchemy of souls s2

i just. love. this series. so much. like, the characters are so well built, the storyline, the romance, the destiny, oh my god. please watch this.

#1 - welcome to samdal-ri

this comes as a surprise to absolutely no one. what a feel-good drama to end 2023. it was the perfect remix of hometown cha cha cha that we all needed. ji chang wook, my absolute gem of a man, and shin hye sun, queen of no shit given but too many shits given roles. adore the friendships, romance, calm setting, the love between everyone. please watch it.

[unnursvanablog]

Lawyer dramas are usually something that I shy away from (but not as much as doctor dramas) but with the right cast and story I am willing to give most things a try. I also got a little sick earlier this week and I had finished this weeks episodes of No Gain No Love and binged the remining episodes of the new season of The Rings of Powers so I had nothing to watch and therefor decided to just give The Judge of Hell a go.

And while I was itinually hoping for a more horror-esque sort of story, but this no The Guest. This is just a darker fantasy story with a demon as a protagonist - but what a protagonist she is! I find Park Shin Hye very charming and funny in this role. I genuinely chuckle at lot of her scenes. But then again I just tend to have a fondness for these sort of no nonsense, very tired of humans and their nonsense sort of female fantasy characters. It's a bit camp, and I enjoy it.

The fantasy elements in this show are sparse. Much sparser than I would like, at least in the first two episode and it felt very info dumpy at times. Lot of things explained through text on screen, things are explained to us quite rapidly at times instead of letting it slowly unravel through the story just to sort of laying the groundwork and setting the scenes so the story can be ushered to a start. It's annoying, but I get it and I can deal with it.

It feels very procedural, typical lawyer/judge sort of stuff (but the judge part is just sort of a setting, it's not really heavy on making sure it's accurate. This is a campy fantasy show and not really a very heavy drama where they fact check stuff) with like a certain case filling up the bulk of the episode, with some goals and personal moments of the charcaters sprinkled in there, and then it comes to a close and the story continues on. I do think the angle of her being more liniant towards criminal and then just straight up killing them and sending them to hell quite interesting and I do suspect that the murder of the real Kang Bit Na will slowly weave it's way into the story. She will probably finally get the justice for that death in the end, which landed her being stuck in Kang Bit Na's body when she acidentally got sent into that hell courtroom instead of her killer, and then possibly having to make up her mind if she wants to stay in that human body or not… for love.

The cop character, aka the male lead is fine. He is just sort of there for me if I am being honest but he seems to be a nice balance to the 'I can't believe I have to deal with this nonsense' sort of character that Kang Bit Na is. He is filled with longing to do the right thing and making sure his community is safe (there is maybe a waft of copaganga in there but that comes with these sort of shows) and uphold justice. Somewhat of a sunshine to her moon, and I do enjoy that sort of dynamic. I do like when the female character get's to be the more mean one, it must be said. But there is a slight edge to that male character. I had a hunch, and then in the end of episode two he confessed to having murdered three people and there it was. But, I am sure it's going to be more complex than that. And then she tried to kill him. that was WILD.

I kinda suspect that it the romance might be on the milder side for this one, but then the demon controlling Bit Na asked the dude to sort of fake date her (stop it drama, don't dangle my fav romance trope in front of me and then don't deliver) so what do I know. I know that a lot of people don't enjoy Park Shin Hye when it's very romance heavy and they don't find her to have great chemistry with her male leads (I have seen her do a good and a bad job at it) and they don't like the way she kisses her male costars (which I wish the kdrama community would give a bit of a rest, because the critiscism has been done to death, because maybe it's just the way that she is directed or has been directed since she was a teen) and while I can't say there is a sizzling chemistry between Bit Na and Da On… yet, I don't think the drama requires it.

Yes, she seems to be quite uncomfortable with heavy romance. I get it, it's a valid criticism. But the roles that a actress like her are often offered, especially once Shin Hye got into her young adult career were romance-focused, rom-com and youth-dramas and there aren't a whole lot of options for a strictly no-romance roles for women in kdramas, if you are playing the lead. But I do think Park Shin Hye is trying to find those roles for herself now (she does like to kick ass in a lot of her dramas, and do some action which I admire) so maybe she is aware that that is her weakness. And that's okay (sorry, I am a Park Shin Hye girly and I have been defending her from angry fangirls for a long time).

I must say that the two hours that took to watch the first two episodes flew by quite fast and I was quite entertained by it. I didn't start scrolling my phone and I was quite engaged by the whole thing. More so than I thought I would be. So I think I will be adding it to my tv show watching schedule for now on, at least. Just so I can watch Park Shin Hye being evil and murdering scumbags and looking very good while doing so. Whenever the music starts and we see her walking menacingly in slow motions as she is about to murder a man… that's when my cold dead heart skips a beat.

[filthy-mudeoki]

Alchemy of Souls - 환혼

Review and rambles:

Alchemy of souls  (9/10)

(30 episodes - Part I and II) (2022-2023)

[Cast: Lee Jae Wook, Jung So Min, Go Yoon Jung] 

Synopsis: 

The story of a man, Jang UK whose birth was supposedly ill-fated and yet despite the odds continuously rises to overcome every hurdle he is met with. Set in the fictional country of Daeho, the story follows the trials and tribulations of the young mages and their relationship with forbidden magic, more specially something that is referred to as the ‘Alchemy of Souls.’ This allows souls to switch bodies but with frightening consequences. 

The story is split in two parts. Part 1 (20 episodes) follows Jang UK (Lee Jae -wook) and his friends as the battles to unlock his true power and master it. He does this under the guidance of his secret master, the known and feared assassin Naksu who is trapped inside the body of a weak blind girl thanks the alchemy of souls. She assumes the role of his servant, Mu-deok (Jung So-min) and becomes his master, teaching him her skills as they fall in love with each other. 

Part II is set three years after the finale and the tragedy that occurred to Jang Uk and Mu-doeki. Jang Uk has returned from the dead and has the ice stone in his body. With this power he becomes a feared and ruthless hunter of soul shifters who have run wild. Due to these circumstances and his own heartbreak, his has become isolate from everyone. However he meets the mysterious heiress Jin Bu-yeon (Go Yoon-jung) and their lives become entangled in more ways than one. 

Review: 

The series is split into two parts for a complex storytelling. The first part (20 episodes) really lays the foundation for an amazing character arc that comes full circle in part II. You have to be patient at certain points, but overall, the intensity of the characters and attention to detail does not disappoint. The secondary characters are a delight to behold as they bring a vibrancy to the story in an otherwise heavy on the plot story. The dynamics between the Four Seasons (Jang UK, Seo Yul, Park Dang Gu and Cho Yeong) are funny and makes you wish they had included more of those moments. It’s humorous without trying too hard and the endearing moments between the friends is something so real in a story set in a fictional town based entirely in the fantasy genre. Towards the end (especially in part II), I wished there had been more between some of the secondary characters (especially Park Dang Gu and Cho Yeong) as it felt their story was sort of rushed over for the benefit of the main leads. 

The Cast and performance:

The Main male lead – Lee Jae Wook – brings a surprising intensity to the character Jang Uk that immediately has you rooting for him. Part I sees Jung So Min as the female lead and she does a brilliant job of layering the character’s story so beautifully. At one stage there are multiple characters and personalities and she plays them ALL flawlessly. The leads have amazing chemistry and its rather wonderful to see because you don’t quite realise it’s an epic love story until its too late.

The second female lead – Go Yoon Jung, (in part II) was an interesting but apt choice – as she immediately highlights the sharp contrast to the male lead especially to the character he once was. She protects him (Jang Uk) so he can protect everyone else. Her softness contrasts with the harsh reality of his pain and heartbreak. Go Yoon Jung deserves a lot of credit for being able to make the character her own while still drawing from part I so we’re not left feeling like we totally lost something. We grow to love the character she plays, nearly as much as we love Jang Uk does. 

OST: 

I loved the soundtrack on this one. There are some beautiful instrumental pieces that will leave you feeling nothing but utter peace. The opening sequence is pretty catchy and matched with great visuals. The OST can be found on spotify. I added a few of my personal faves to my own spotify playlist as well. 

Final thoughts: 

While the ending might have been a tad bit rushed for me (and others alike), I really enjoyed this from start to finish. The fantasy element really shone through for me. While there might have been more I wanted from the show, there was very little I would have changed. This is a beautiful story told with amazing scenes and an impressive cast. It’s a long haul of a story but definitely worth it. 

[fauxkaren]

Destined With You - 7/10

I feel SO torn about this drama. Because I did genuinely enjoy it and thought the leads' chemistry and romance was strong. But like, the subplots were just idk. The tone and genre of the drama as a whole seemed to swing wildly from one style to another and it created a weird and uneven feel to the show watching experience.

The premise isn't super unique. It's a reincarnation/past lives/destined to be together type drama with a curse sprinkled in for good measure. BUT the leads are both very charming (I liked both actors from other roles going in to the show) so it makes the show more fun to watch than it might have been with less charming actors as the leads. And while I definitely did enjoy while I was watching, there wasn't anything about the drama that made it stick with me. Like I don't think I will find myself with the urge to watch it again, six months from now.

So the main plotline is that a few centuries ago, the female lead (Hong-jo, a civil servant who works at City Hall)'s past life was a shaman who cursed the male lead's past life and his entire family and the curse was passed down through the generations to the male lead, a lawyer named Shin-yu. They meet again in their current lives and Hong-jo comes into possession of a mysterious box filled with spells written down by her shaman past life. So there are some magic shenanigans, attempts to lift the curse, and tragic past life reveals. And then also there is a stalker who is trying to kill Hong-jo who is unrelated to the reincarnation and curse drama which like... sure... ok. Let's just throw a stalker plot in here too. And at first of course Hong-jo and Shin-yu are at odds with each other etc etc etc but we all know they're gonna fall in love. It's cute.

Which means it's really unfortunate that side plots with the City Hall co-workers fall SO flat. Like... yeah I did NOT care about it at all and it felt like a different show from the main one. The marriage trouble between Shin-yu's parents subplot was also strange because it was dropped for episodes at a time. And uh... I 100% thought Shin-yu's mom was going to start an affair with Shin-yu's best friend. LMAO. Didn't end up happening, but I 100% thought we were in for a The Graduate subplot.

[h-worksrambles]

I finally saw Suzume last night and I can now confirm it was pretty good. Spoilers below:

It’s very much a Makoto Shinkai movie. You know what you’re getting into. Gorgeous digital animation, beautiful music,,teen romance, fantastical takes on natural disasters and…product placement (these movies’ obsession with McDonalds needs to be studied).

I still maintain that Shinkai is not very good at writing romance and is much stronger at visualing imaginative fantasy concepts and mysticism. So once again, I didn’t care about the main couple much but the approaching threat of The Worm, an Evangelion esque entity that emerges from mysterious doors across Japan and risks destroying everything made for some breathtaking shots. The presence of the enigmatic cat, Daijin as an apparent antagonist for much of the movie keeps the plot consistently moving. After Your Name and Weathering With You, it’s neat to see Shinkai go for more of an adventure story with a more involved journey and immediate stakes.

The characters are typically the weakest part of these movies but this cast was…fine. The lead herself, Suzume, is probably the highlight. Shinkai’s female leads tend to be more interesting than his male ones so not chaining us to a plank of wood like Taki from Your Name or an insufferable piece of shit like Hodoka in Weathering With You instantly elevates the experience. Suzume is comparatively far more vibrant and expressive. We admittedly don’t get much time to explore who she is or what she wants, she still manages to be entertaining and sympathetic to watch. Even if love interest Souta is still a pretty dull character (even after he turns into a chair) at least he doesn’t soak up much screen time, and the story remains very much about Suzume. Most other characters Suzume meets on her journey are pleasant enough but never stick around to make much of an impression (shout out to that one girl Shika who had more chemistry with Suzume in five minutes than Souta ever did). The best character stuff is probably between Suzume and her aunt but that doesn’t really get enough screentime, though it does result in a few nice scenes.

I feel like I need to stew a little more on the finale, the role of Daijin and his counterpart and what the movie is trying to say but I could already extrapolate some clear points being made about moving on from grief versus how our own fear of death is a natural part of being that pushes us to keep living, and it makes for a heartfelt ending (Suzume consoling her own younger self through timey wimey shenanigans was probably the single most emotionally effective movie of the film.)

Overall a solid watch. In terms of living up to its predecessors. Your Name was a gorgeous, well made movie but one that ultimately didn’t have much to say. It was a simple high emotion story and that was fine. Weathering With You was a movie with maybe too much to say, wading into topics it was not prepared to cover in ways that…honestly felt kind of irresponsible and disgusting. Suzume is closer to the Your Name side of things. I dunno if it’s as tight an experience as Your Name. It does feel somewhat more unfocused by comparison but it’s a got a bit more thematic meat on its bones.

But yeah. Nothing mind blowing but a fun time. A good 7/10.

[onceuponakdrama]

Queen Of Tears KDrama Review —

—

Bingo Card For Queen Of Tears

TW: miscarriage mention and death

Synopsis: Hong Hae-In is a third generation chaebol of the Queens group that married Baek Hyunwoo, son of farmers turned lawyer that works for the group underneath the Hong family. After three years of marriage, Hyunwoo is ready for a divorce, only to find out Hae-In has a disease that gives her only three months left to live. Queen of Tears is about the crisis/hardships of marriage as to what will rekindle them, along with the threat of those who want to get rid of the Hong family.

Overall Main Plot: Rating - 9 out of 10

I think this is one of the kdramas that I would love to rewatch over and over again. I just wanna say that this rating is predominantly due to the actors and their chemistry. I was really invested into the plot and the romance. I really loved the idea of the stereotypical "gender roles" in these dramas being swapped because watching a female lead who is more career driven and a male lead who is more in touch with his emotions was genuinely so refreshing. I was initially worried about how the plot would portray their relationships because a lot of these chaebol dramas are the same; however, I really liked watching the Hong family struggle for a bit and essentially be reliant on the Baek family. There was some genuine character growth that I loved to watch. Not only was I interested in how the romance would play out, but watching these families bond like actual in-laws was really nice, especially since they eventually did come towards the plot and showed a reflection of the characters themselves. As for the plot with the Sol-Hee and Eunseung, I was interested to see how their relationship was playing out, especially as the drama went, they kept turning on one another, which showed how unreliable the alliance was for the group that went against the Hongs. Obviously this is not a 10 out of 10 due to certain things I wished I could have seen.

The Miscarriage - I really wish they had an actual conversation about the miscarriage and patch that part of their relationship together. This was the big thing that drew them apart and I think it would have been beautiful to have that moment for them to directly communicate and address why things went the way that they did. I think if there was something more about this in particular, I would have given it a 10/10.

Moh Seul-Hee's Motivations - maybe it's because I've watched them for so long, she immediately stuck out to me because she felt like she's a part of the antagonist group. I know some people would disagree with me, but I wish we got some actual background from her about what essentially pushed her to do all of this. It was explained away as her wanting better for her son, but then she did not show that consistently. I wish there was just more about her and specifically why she was so comfortable getting rid of him and the complete greed as to why she wanted everything.

Characters: Rating - 10 out of 10

↣ Baek Hyunwoo (played by Kim Soo Hyun) - I want to reiterate that I love these characters, especially this man right here. He was such a consistent character. He was just such a cutie pie and he clearly showed his love for Hae-In. Each time he cried, he CRIED. He was just clearly written by a woman because there was so much love and devotion and he never lost that motivation, especially with the threat of Eunseung. I understood his previous motivations of wanting a divorce, how the family was treating him prior, and then a wife that he didn't feel supported by. My only complaint of him though is that I didn't like him liking the thought of her dying, granted their situation was very particular. But it passed quicker than I thought and, eventually, he came to his senses and began to fight for the love of his life. I genuinely loved his character and I will miss him the most.

↣ Hong Hae-In (played by Kim Jiwon) - first of all, Hong Hae-In is such a QUEEN. Jiwon played her so well; obviously, she was supposed to be very chaebol-esque. I know it's a double standard and all, but I absolutely loved her and how fierce she was in her career. She was clearly a respectable business woman that had goals she was working towards and, honestly, she was very relatable as time went due to her lack of time. I felt so bad for her when she started to space out and her illness started to get to her; I felt even more bad realizing how bad her family dynamics are and she really felt so lonely and she did not stop loving her husband. Obviously, Hyunwoo was different about the situation, but she told him about the illness which counts for a lot I think. I really hate that they took her memory away, but those are writing problems not a character problem.

↣ Yoon Eunseung (played by Park Sunghoon) - Oh. My. God. Park Sunghoon did such an excellent job OF PLAYING SUCH A BITCH. I think this was one love triangle that was not a triangle. From what I observed, there was no one really rooting for him. He was clearly just obsessed with Hae-In and that was due to his mommy issues, which is not his fault but does provide context. Eunseung was so Annoying; I understand why he's important to the plot, but he had me screaming at the screen whenever he showed up like OH BROTHER THIS GUY STINKS. I actually did hate that he ended up dying; I wanted him to suffer behind bars like what he had done to Hyunwoo, but realistically, he wouldn't have been in there long I'm guessing and he would never leave Hae-In alone. I found his background interesting though; he just wanted to be loved and thought Hae-In would give that to him, but she kept showing that she did not like him, even with her damned memory gone. Overall, he was just an interesting case because he was someone you could definitely sympathize with but the way that he acts makes it hard to root for him.

Romance: Rating - 10 out of 10

Romance is real, no notes. Just kidding, but I'm serious. It's funny how I was sobbing and was incredibly invested, only for me to realize that this is not a real man. This is fiction and that's clear from the way that Hyunwoo shows up for Hae-In. Hae-In showed love in her own ways, but let's be real: 1. he was a broken man when he thought she had died in the car 2. he RAN out of the hospital bed to make sure he can rescue his woman and 3. he took a whole bullet for her and continued to work to help protect the Hong family. I love these two so much; they have such great chemistry and their acting was great. I just loved this as a romance, especially since they were rekindling love rather than just starting out and it was nice to see those flashbacks of them when they did initially fall in love.

Secondary Characters/B-Plot: Rating - 8 out of 10

As I previously mentioned, I really loved seeing the families coming together and working together. I think that was the most that Ioved from the secondary plot. The villagers weren't super interesting and there were some plots I did not care about, especially the ones they just threw in on the end, like how Hyunwoo's sister was worried about her husband having an affair, who we haven't even seen on the screen so I was confused for a second. I did really like the love line for BeomJa - I love that she's the one who confessed and made the moves on him. The confession scene was so funny. As for Soocheol, I was also interested in his relationship with Da-Hye but I hate how she's left him multiple times and probably has given him trauma; the first time was enough like ma'am. I also do appreciate the dive they did into the Hong's family relationship with one another because there was clear problems, especially with Hae-In due to her brother dying and the strain/favoritism due to her younger brother. I did appreciate the character growth of it all and it was so wonderful to watch these people become better.

Additional Notes:

I wanna take this time to highlight the in-laws' new relationship together. I know I've brought it up a lot, but I really liked their scenes together, especially when the Hong parents were struggling with how to handle things that kept coming one after another. On top of when Hyunwoo was shot and that scene of them all coming together was so beautiful.

I don't think people talk enough about the comedic aspect in this drama. Jiwon and Soohyun, separately and together, they were hilarious. When Hyunwoo was crying at the table and saying how he didn't wanna go home and even the dramatics of being a male in-law that has to cook for the ritual/memorial thing, super funny. Hae-In is also super hilarious, especially the scene where she thought he was pulling her bag and just walked away in silence with a hand on her face. Again, the comedy and drama and romance was balanced out so well.

Older Brother - I wish there was more clarification on what happened with the oldest brother who got kicked out. I would have liked to have had him do more with the group to really solidify the union of the family and how he was going to run the Queens group.

I will give them credit for giving us a good drama with a decent ending. It was bittersweet but it's better than some of the nonsense that other dramas have given us. I love that we got glimpses of their family together, both with the kid and actual in-laws via pictures. I really loved this drama and will definitely be watching it again sometime.

Overall Rating: 9 out of 10

I really liked this drama. They have high ratings for a reason; they did keep up well along with the plot and the romance. There were some frustrating times, but it makes sense for the most part. I feel like there was a lot I already said, but yeah this is a great drama.

Recommended?

↣ Yes: this has it all - romance, comedy, drama, it's great. It's also very satisfactory because they do get a happy ending. There's a lot of focus on family, both as a married couple but also in regards to in-laws and the complicated relationships that come with marriage. There are some moments that you will just sob but it's so worth it.

↣ No: if you are triggered by miscarriages, obviously do not watch it. There is also a suicide that occurs. There are some frustrating beats where the characters act stupid but there's always something like that with these.

[koalathebear]

Maxton Hall Stars Harriet Herbig-Matten & Damian Hardung Dish on Prime Video Romance | Interview

Interesting interview. A few observations.

As I already knew, they are both very proficient in English - Damian probably a bit more than Harriet.

Damian is clearly a lot more comfortable being interviewed than Harriet is - Harriet is moving around a lot, playing with her hair, putting herself at weird angles ... I think they're probably both totally freaked out / overwhelmed by the unexpected popularity of the show. As soon as I saw the show the first time on the 9th, I had had a feeling that the show was going to be a lot bigger than they expected and had wondered how the cast were going to cope

Harriet is clearly going to struggle a bit in her responses about the character of Ruby.

On the one hand, the interviewers are going to want to pursue a - this is so romantic they should be together storyline, but clearly Harriet herself believes the relationship is pretty toxic and I think she feels uncomfortable advocating it - which I totally understand in this day and age.

In the presser, she even said that she felt a bit lost / subsumed/subordinate to the James character and had to detox for a few days post-filming - even Damian looked a bit taken aback by that admission.

She's going to have a lot more of these interviews so I hope she manages to come to a comfortable position where she can be a bit more comfortable with them.

I think she ended up with a good answer at the end - that Ruby falls in love with the good / emotional side of James and not the toxic. I think that's where I landed on the relationship, too - she not only was the catalyst for change in him, but James himself had some good elements within him already and he was responsible for also making himself change, not just relying on Ruby

I'm older than a lot of the fandom / target demographic for this show so I still remember the days of Veronica Mars and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The VM show runners and the main actress did not like the fact that the fans loved Veronica & Logan the reformed bad boy so much. Similarly with Buffy, the lead actress the show runner didn't like the fact that so many fans liked Spike / Buffy. The problem was, the actors and characters had such chemistry that it was difficult to move away from that and so they were faced with a quandary. Attempts to move the main female character towards a more wholesome male were usually unsuccessful and interview comments that disparaged a popular ship were also challenging. It will be interesting to see how Maxton Hall navigates a similar quagmire.

Given that this has been an unexpected runaway hit, I can't imagine that they won't have a season 2. I just hope that they maintain the quality and don't make it like all the other bland, generic teen romances on offer ...

Random thought - I wonder how Damian would have handled a role like eg Kieran.

[gizkasparadise]

List of dramas where the large age gaps (regardless of gender) didn’t deter the chemistry or ruin the drama for you, including noona romances where the age gap IS the plot

And dramas where they didn’t. I ask because I have been recommended the Turkish drama Aziz and I’m hesitant because the age gap between the two bothers me too much. Of course it is just my opinion and no one else’s and I could be wrong about it but it posed a major hindrance to me

sure! here's some that come to mind--not taking into account actual actor ages because i am too lazy to look them up :'D

Female Lead is the Older One aka Noona Romances

empress ki. QUEEN SHIT. she's older & more experienced in life than her ultimate love interest (#spoilers) and the chemistry is A++++

find yourself was a fun if average drama, but the chemistry between the leads was A+

the glory okay there's not a ton of shippiness yet, but i'm 100% sold on the potential of them in the first half

someday or one day is kind of screwy, since it's about time travelers, so who's the oldest switches around quite a bit. alice ke i think is more than 5 years older than her love interest though

eternal love: ten miles of peach blossoms. the female lead i think is like. 10s of thousands of years older than her final love interest; visually they look around the same age though #immortals

my fated boy bored me and i ended up dropping it, but the chemistry iirc was fine and the show operates on the noona romance trope

--

Male Lead is the Older One

the rise of phoenixes im actually not sure how old the characters are supposed to be, but there's a sizable age gap IRL between them. the chemistry is RIDICULOUS

love between fairy and devil sort of counts? visually, they're around the same age, but the male lead has 1000s of years on the female lead in-story #immortals

because this is my first life has two couples where there's an age gap and they're both pretty great

moon lovers: scarlet heart ryeo is an entertaining rollercoaster mess of a drama, and the leads have great chemistry

my liberation notes this one isn't as straight up romantic as the other dramas listed, but there's about a 10 year gap between the leads and they work really well together

when a man falls in love. this drama is not universally liked (in fact, most people hate it but THEYRE WRONG), but it basically operates on the age gap/power gap trope and is a dysfunctional ride full of morally grey characters. i loved it, but i love mess so take that as you will

--

edit: OOPS, sorry, missed the second part of the ask. dramas where the chemistry/age gap didnt work for me:

romance is a bonus book. i didnt vibe with the main couple and i think the ML had some big maturity problems as of where i left off. also i never mentally got over the fact that she was divorced A FULL ASS YEAR and he didnt know????

cheese in the trap. i liked this drama but the ML just felt way, way older than everyone around him so it’d be a little off when he’d get involved in the petty campus antics

mr sunshine. i didnt feel it between eugene and ae sin. at all. literally any of her other love interests would have been preferred

[mirageofadesert]

Rating cdramas I watched as a newbie pt. 2

!! Spoiler Warning!! In part 1 I talked about The Untamed, Word of Honor, Back From the Brink and Till the end of the moon...

Love is Sweet 9/10 

Acting: 10/10 World-building: 9/10 Production: 9/10 Storytelling: 8/10 Re-watch Value: 8/10  Pacing: 9/10 Bonus: TTEOTM therapy session 

I went into this show for Luo Yunxi and Bai Lu, but I had my doubt, since I rarely like romance dramas. However, my worries were unfounded - instead the show convinced me to pay for an iQIYI subscription. I missed out on sleep again and was giggling like a teenage girl while watching the main leads fall in love. Most surprising for me was that I actually cared a lot about the investment banking plot, which had me at the edge of my seat a couple of times.

While sometimes quite silly, the stories and characters managed to keep a good balance between funny and serious scenes. At first, the ML came across kind of creepy, but they managed to redeem him later on, without completely excusing his behavior. I really loved and related to the domestic relationship in the last part of the drama. What I enjoyed less is the 2nd couple; while they were cute and I do understand why the story needed them, I ended up skipping a lot of their scenes.

Love Between a Fairy and a Devil 7+1/10

Acting: 7/10 World-building: 7/10 Production: 8/10 Storytelling: 6/10 Re-watch Value: 8/10  Pacing: 7/10 Bonus: +1 for the ML weeping for his father - more men need to cry like this!   

The second part of this drama is significantly better than the first. It's another testament, how a superficial script can lead to bad performances. Once the actors were actually given some nuances to portray, they did a great job. Shout out to Dylan Wang as Dongfang Qingcang and his supporting cast for their emotional impactful performances. The scene of him weeping for his father is still one of my favorites. It made me notice how rare these kind of emotional outburst of male characters are on TV!

Esther Yu's character(s) were hard to watch at first. The voice and the one-dimensional character of Orchid and later Xi Yun thankfully went through some positive changes. Similarly, Zhang Linghe as Chang Heng felt quite flat in most parts of the show.

I found the concept of the conflict between different between the fairy realm and the moon clan quite interesting, even through the fairy realm lacked some depth. The main villain of the show ended up being quite disappointing and some of the twist and turns unnecessary. While I wont re-watch the whole show, it had some really impressive and memorable scenes, that I will go back for!

And the Winner is love 3+1/10

Acting: 7/10 World-building: 6/10 Production: 6/10 Storytelling: 4/10 Re-watch Value: 2/10  Pacing: 3/10 Bonus:  +1 for Luo Yunxi with a fan

This one was rough. It took me 21 episode to get into the drama and actually care about the characters. Luo Yunxi and Zuo Tingwei as the 2nd ML Mu Yuan did a great acting job. Not only did they deliver emotional and nuanced performances, their actions scenes were quite well done too. The rest of the cast, especially the female lead played by Chen Yuqi were hard to watch. The chemistry between her and every other character was non existing. The story line was dragging out a very monotonous plot, that did not need all these twists and turns.

This show made me release that watching cdramas at a faster speed is an great option in order to get through boring and slow scenes.

My New Life 6/10

Acting: 6/10 World-building: 7/10 Production: 7/10 Storytelling: 6/10 Re-watch Value: 3/10  Pacing: 6/10 Bonus: For having multiple gay character and couples in the show!

I watched this show while waiting for more episodes of Destined to air. I did not expect to like it as much as I did. While the plot is a bit cheesy at times, the different cultural backgrounds of the princes as well as the feminist theme and serious issues (e.g. postnatal depression, domestic abuse, emancipation) the show tackles, made me enjoy it a lot! I loved the relationships between the whole cast and the acting, while at times a bit too silly, held up well overall. By the end of the show, I did care about every character. I don't think I will re-watch is, since there were no outstanding scenes to me.

The next part will probably be about Destined, The Sleuth of the Min Dynasty and some of Luo Yunxi's other dramas.

[consumeronionbulletin]

Doona! / Lee Doo-na! (2023)

The silent, hangry, chain-smoking, giving-no-f-ks version of Bae Suzy that I didn't know I needed.

This series felt like a lighter version of Something in the Rain with a much better soundtrack, which is how I found myself spending most of my weekend watching it.

The show is an extremely no plot, just vibes, slice of life type of thing. I liked that, but I know it'll be slow going for some people. I haven't read the webtoon this is (allegedly) based on, but I can already tell writers for the show took more than a few liberties with the material.

What Worked

Bae Suzy's performance as a sad, jaded, burned out, misunderstood idol worked. This feels like something Hollywood has already done to death. Kind of a cable TV version of a pop star (male or female) who's slumming it with ordinary people and ends up finding their voice again. Along with true love.

The reason why this never felt cliche is because Suzy made you believe in it, and because the directors and cinematographers were so good at their job that you just had to believe in it too. I was willing to suspend disbelief, because I wanted to just live in the moment with them in that beautiful fantasy.

What Didn't Work

Look, Yang Se-jong had great chemistry with Suzy, and with most of the cast, but it is a complete fantasy that an ordinary, decent, hardworking guy would have that many women chasing after him. It works in a webtoon because you know what kind of story you're in for. It kind of worked here, but there were moments when I had to just actively accept the premise and move on with it. It was okay since there were only 9 episodes, but if we'd had 20, I think it would have been too much.

The Performances

Bae Suzy as "smoking idol" Lee Doo-na. Whatever they paid Suzy, it wasn't enough. She was willing to put her dignity on the line to get a good performance. There are like three other idol / actors that maybe could have made this script work, and I still think she would have beaten them out if they had open casting. I know there are people who loved her in Start-up, but this is the performance from Suzy that I'll remember most.

Yang Se-jong as "Gary Stu" Lee Won-jun. I really want to read the webtoon just to figure out how many liberties the TV show took with this character. I liked this actor in Still 17, and I enjoyed his performance here. I liked how this was (in some ways) a gender-flipped version of the sweet caretaker love interest girlfriend that you'll find in so many other forms of media. I just had trouble believing that guy could grab as much attention as he did in the real world.

Shin Ha-young as "Fake High School Girlfriend" Kim Jin-joo. The actor did a good job with what she was given, and I liked the fact that she's the same age as the two leads, but the character was just not given enough to do in the story. In a longer drama (with maybe a different actress like Roh Yoon-seo) they would have made her a viable option for Won-jun. As it is, we spent 1/3 of her time dealing with her backstory (which was mostly just to make Won-jun look good), and 1/3 of it having her pine after Won-jun and ultimately get dumped. It just felt like a waste.

Park Se-wan as "Fake Grade School Girlfriend" Choi I-ra. The actor was entertaining as heck in this show. I liked her love-line in the background and she brought some good moments of comedy to the show. But the character definitely felt like something from a webtoon (for good and bad).

Kim Sun-young as Doo-na's mother. I'm always happy to see her on my screen, but why didn't they have her do more? It's a waste of top notch talent. She could have been a menacing record executive, or the fun landlady who messes with (and secretly looks after) the young cast. If they were gonna cast her, they should have been given more than a few scenes where she yells at Doona and steals all her money (off screen). What a pity.

Everyone else. They managed to bring in alot of extras and fun little side characters that made the show feel bigger than it was, and I enjoyed that.

TL; DR:

This show is all mood and very little plot. If you like the first episode or so, then you'll probably like the rest of it. Otherwise, you might want to skip it.

[metalandmagi]

Hi.....Do you mind if I ask you some random thing? I used to love shounen and shoujo manga equally....But ever since I found BL manga 3 years ago, my interest in shoujosei (especially het romance) decrese a lot, and what I search for is just the dynamic between mc (male) and male lead...I don't want to read mc (female) and male lead or mc (male) and female lead...And what I want to read mostly are just mlm or wlw stories....

What do you think is happening to me? Is it really weird?

I can't speak for everyone, but I feel like I'm seeing this a lot nowadays, especially in the anime community. In my personal experience, I felt a similar way in high school. I went through a period of being more interested in mlm or wlw, for a couple of different reasons. One reason was because it was just hard to find straight ships I liked after a few years of consuming anime. The second reason was because....well...sometimes women in certain anime were just... not written well. So I was more interested in ships with men (even though yaoi has its fair share of unhealthy dynamics, obviously) and ships between women because I just thought those characters worked better as a couple. The last reason is because...back in the day, it was still pretty uncommon to see homosexual relationships in media at all (at least where I was), so when anime opened up that door for me, I was very interested because it just wasn't something I was used to. Again, I can't speak for you, but those were my main reasons for getting into bl and gl in the first place.

But now, as an adult, I'm back to liking het ships just as much because what I figured out about myself is that I ship based on chemistry, not necessarily gender. If I think 2 characters work well together, I ship them. And a lot of times (especially in some of the shoujo and even shounen I was watching) the main female and male character just didn't have chemistry for me. But since I've been watching anime for a LONG ASS TIME, I've gotten better at identifying what makes some ships work for me more than others. I'm not going to automatically ship two men or two women, and I'm not going to automatically ship a man and a woman just because they're written to be together. They have to make me believe in the romance.

ALL THAT TO SAY, if you're more interested in mlm or wlw ships, that's fine! You don't have to have a specific reason to ship something or justify your ships to anyone. I've seen a lot of people who are more drawn to mlm and wlw than straight couples, but I feel like as long as people aren't doing it to fetishize gay couples or put down straight couples by saying they aren't as valid, you're fine. You like what you like. We all just have to respect each other.

[rachelbethhines]

60 Years of Doctor Who Anniversary Marathon - Martin: 2nd Review

Cold Fusion - Full Audio​

Now this was a pleasant surprise. I was initially dreading this audio as I disliked the novel that it's based off of. But the audio adaptation managed to fix some of my biggest issues that I had with the original. Spoilers below for a 30 year old book and 5 year old audio ahead.

So one of the things that angered me so much about the original novel was the ending where the doctor's wife was killed for seemingly no story reason other than to give the main character more man pain that he didn't need. It was a classic case of fridging; introducing a female character just to be a love interest and then killing her off for sake of the male character's development. Oh I still hate it to this day!

The audio changes this up somewhat. It's not a perfect solution, but instead of getting murdered by the bad guy, the character of Patience disappears in a time vortex. It's still removes her from the narrative abruptly without closure and is confusingly presented on audio, but at least it doesn't kill her off. Her fate from that point is left ambiguous and she can be brought back later if anyone wants to. And as I like the character, I do hope she comes back. Patience is given so much more personality in the audio that was missing from the book, and I enjoy the idea of the doctor running into a person from his past that he can't quite remember, but knows he has a connection too. At least conceptually I like it, poor execution can drag this idea down hard. (glares daggers as River Song and Moffat)

But on to other things I liked, I liked how the Tardis crews were presented and how they all had things to do. Adric was my personal favorite and it was good to hear him back. I liked his chemistry with everyone, especially with the Seventh Doctor. Speaking of the Seventh Doctor, I have never really cared for the New Adventures take on the character, and there are still things here that annoy me slightly, but McCoy breathes so much life into his performance that I can manage to swallow some of the more dodgy aspects of the character. It's not a major improvement, but it is an improvement.

I also didn't even mind the Other or the Looms this go around. For one, it's left ambiguous as who's memories we're really seeing, and it's hinted that Patience may be from another dimension entirely. One where Gallifrey was destroyed by the aliens that are invading reality/time. If taken to that conclusion, couldn't the Other be a Doctor from another universe? One who has a different history to our own? Our even a connected one, if you prefer? Anyways, I like the headcannon and I'm keeping it.

COLD FUSION: by Megaplumfinity

Now on to what I didn't like. Even at six episodes, the story was rushed. The one advantage the novel has over the audio is that things can breath more.

The ending suffers the most as the weight of things, (Patience's 'death', the villain reveal and his comeuppance, the Seventh Doctor's betrayal, ect.) doesn't have time to really be felt by the audience or the characters before we're off the next thing. Furthermore the wrap up is, well, a bit fanwanky and fails to provide conclusion to the Doctor's new found animosity towards himself. And it all ends rather abruptly without any real closure. Meh... Still this doesn't hamper the lead up to the final episode which is still loads of fun, and that's what good Doctor Who should be, fun.