#till the end of the moon ep 40

[movielosophy]

till the end of the moon  | Tantai Jin purified

[deng-yi-deng]

3D

FRIENDS, THE OPENING AND CLOSING ANIMATIONS FOR TILL THE END OF THE MOON ARE IN 3D.

h/t to https://m.weibo.cn/status/4888994854998680?jumpfrom=weibocom#&video

If you don't have 3D glasses, cover one eye while watching and you can see it.

AND THERE ARE OTHER 3D SEGMENTS, LIKE WHEN GODS AND DEMONS ARE FIGHTING. !?!?!?

[shizekarnstein]

I finally decided to watch (torture myself) a chinese drama after taking a rest from the genre for a couple weeks (aka after finishing war of faith) and my lucky pick was till the end of the moon based only on 1) a post i read a long time ago about how interesting ep 1 was for a xianxia 2) 40 ep sounded like a good number (i was a fool) and 3) it really has a pretty op. And here i am. I went completely blind and im really glad i did? After finishing it yesterday (and crying my eyes out just as many times as the characters spitted litters of blood) i did my regular well lets see what other ppl thought of it in the trusthworthy internet and afsghjsjs its actually incredible how bad some ppl are at consumming media and making tantrums bc things dont happen exactly as they wanted them to. The ed was enjoyable, i expected far worse, and it even alludes with zero subtely to the original novels ending (that i just learned about) but somehow ppl still act as if it was an absolute garbage can when even i, a total blind watcher, could tell it leaned strongly to the happy ending a lot of ppl were crying about being robbed of???????? And convincing ppl to never watch it bc of their own biased pre conceptions about it??????? Pls. How utterly annoying. Till the end of the moon is a fantastic emotional rollecoster that production troubles aside manages to have you totally invested for 40 ep with an ending that in no way "ruins the whole show" just bc it didnt follow the exact step by step detailed recreation some ppl apparently needed? Pls first watch the ending of the rebel and then start talking about a truly bad executed "bad ending".

[lyxurious]

So you like Luo Yunxi: A drama recommendation list

So you watched "Till the End of the Moon", and all you got is heartbreak, brainworms, and a shiny new lowkey or highkey obsession with Luo Yunxi (perhaps other people from the amazing cast too, but we're focusing on him here)? You want to see more of him, but you don't know where to start? Fear not, for this list is here to hopefully help you out with that.

Here be some (non-spoilery, but might mention if it generally ends well or not) spark notes on all his past dramas with him in the first male lead role, that are currently available with English subs (+ 2 very important supporting roles + 1 bonus). In chronological order, from most to least recent!

Light Chaser Rescue

Type: Modern, rescue missions, human drama, romance

Episodes: 40

Available at: WeTv, YouTube, viki

What's the deal? Jaded and cynical lawyer meets cute and icy doctor lady who is not here for his bs, and discovers the joys of love and most importantly, volunteer rescue work.

On the one hand: Detailed and extremely realistic scenes of all sorts of natural disasters happening. The production team collaborated with a real life team where anyone can volunteer and get training as a rescuer. They built a wholeass glacier for the final episodes and you could never tell it's fake looking at it even on HD. The side characters are mostly likeable (which is something you can't say for every drama), although flawed and human. FL is a cool-headed independent grownup woman who bottles up her feelings like a fine vintage.

On the other: The pacing is rather choppy and makes it feel like they planned out the disaster scenes/rescue missions first and everything else was added later to link said missions together and give the characters stuff to do in between. Since this is a drama and they have a limited cast, the team's abilities are a bit exaggerated at times (they turn up for everything that happens anywhere, doctor FL is a swiss army knife of specialties). Ending feels a bit abrupt.

Watch it if: You enjoy seeing Luo Yunxi suffer physically, you like stories with ordinary people being heroes while also remaining very much ordinary people.

Lie to Love

Type: Modern, romance, office, suspense

Episodes: 32

Available at: WeTV, YouTube

What's the deal? Local woman is convinced her one night stand during a mountain hike killed her father, so she returns after 2 years to go undercover in male nerdy Paris Hilton protagonist's glitzy hotel business and cancel his entire existence. Spoiler alert (but not really because this is actually not even the first 6 eps): he is a good guy and didn't do it and they fall in love and together they set out to uncover the truth and take down his shady uncle.

On the one hand: Objectively speaking, the plot for this is on the better side for a drama of its type. It's got suspense, it's got plot twists, it's got fluff, it's got drama, it's got more communication between the main CP than one would expect on a regular day, misunderstandings don't last long, the nice side characters are likeable, and 2nd ML is doing an incredible job at being a 2-faced creep. LYX is serving many a great business wear look in the 2nd half especially.

On the other: The FL is Cheng Xiao. A severely miscast Cheng Xiao in a role that is core in the plot and on paper, challenging. For fans, winner winner chicken dinner. For the rest of us, it's up to each viewer to decide if overall as a drama, the points in the above section are strong enough to balance this casting out.

Watch it if: You have a thing for men in suits and glasses (that makes two of us), you prefer ignoring the FL in dramas so you can make elaborate headcanons shipping the ML with the psycho stalker 2nd ML or the goofy rockstar 3rd ML instead.

Broker

Type: Modern, office, medical research, suspense, romance

Episodes: 42

Available at: YouTube, viki

What's the deal? Spy is ordered to infiltrate a lab and lowkey honey trap his way into stealing female scientist's multi-million research, is uno reverse carded when she fixes his broken heart and trust in humanity.

On the one hand: The rare case where he is a morally grey character in a modern setting. The other rare case where he gets to do action sequences in a modern setting. There's a shower sex scene (sit down, implied and partially dressed of course, this is still a cdrama), and one where he gets whipped on a table. There is a very badass sidekick girl who is just as broken as him if not worse, and very shippable with the FL's perky and spoiled little sister.

On the other: The premise is cool but sadly, there's way more filler office drama (in the lab) and 2nd CP being a frustrating snoozefest than spy activities. It's a drama that was held up for a long while in censorship limbo, and a considerable chunk of the ML's backstory and scenes were left in the editing room, which unfortunately throws the show off balance by a lot.

Watch it if: You are a diehard Luo Yunxi, Victoria Song or Xu Kaicheng completionist (in which case you have permission to come cry on my shoulder), you find yourself trapped in a cave, the rescue team is 48 hours away, and the only thing in there with you is a device that has no other data on it but all 42 episodes of Broker.

Love is Sweet

Type: Modern, romance, office

Episodes: 36

Available at: iQiyi, YouTube, amazon prime

What's the deal? Local woman applies for a job in huge investment banking company where she runs into her childhood friend -slash- nemesis after 10 years, they both gradually discover time makes people grow and occasionally fall deeply, ridiculously in love.

On the one hand: Sugar and fun and shoujo manga tropes aplenty! God tier CP chemistry! Some of the most epic makeouts to ever slip under the nose of the review committees. Characters that have actual profound growth under the "every romcom ever" cheeky banter. 2nd ML also offers shirtlessness and angsty backstory if you cannot live without those. There's even an adorable and very plot-relevant corgi!

On the other: The tremendous main CP chemistry has made this drama the exception for many who otherwise avoid both modern dramas and romcoms, but if that doesn't carry the show for you, I'm afraid there's not much else to see here. The 2nd CP is fuel for the "2nd CPs are annoying and waste screentime" complaint fire. (although, protip: even on the first watch you can probably skip their scenes without missing anything of value). The tear allergy is a bit of a ridiculous premise, but it's a real thing (who knew!), and it's not addressed much after a point.

Watch it if: You need something sweet and cute to fill the gaping hole Till The End of the Moon left in your chest, you love the tsundere overbearing CEO archetype but you also prefer it when he is more than a dry irredeemable asshole, you love romcoms because you enjoy both the "will they won't they" and the cute "we're an item now" domesticity.

And The Winner is Love

Type: Costume, wuxia, romance

Episodes: 48

Available at: iQiyi, YouTube

What's the deal? Dashing, elegant, fan-wielding dreamboat young master falls in love with girlie burdened with the heavy responsibility of leading a sect with bad rep and protecting a very powerful and thus dangerous cultivation manual. Supposedly.

On the one hand: Luo Yunxi looks like this:

for the whole drama. Every novel writer who ever wrote about a flirty and sophisticated young master whose beauty made flowers bloom along his path and women as well as men fell in love with him at first sight and all that purple prose-y stuff, has actually written about Luo Yunxi as Shangguan Tou whether they were aware of it or not. He is The Archetype and his popularity among bilibili fmv editors is proof. There's some great wire work in the first half. The soundtrack is pretty solid.

On the other: If you're looking for plot, run away and don't look back. I've watched the whole thing and I could not tell you how the story goes. I went in with a "idc about plot, i just want to look at Luo Yunxi in costume for 40 hours" mentality and I still struggled, make of that what you will. Chen Yuqi is the FL, saddled with a poorly written role and a choice of VA who arguably wasn't the best fit for her or the role. Chemistry is passable depending on your standards, but for most of the 2nd half of the drama it takes a nosedive together with the plot. Luo Yunxi got injured while filming this so they had to cut action scenes by a lot, so in the last 3rd or so it's wuxia without the wuxia. It's the only recent case where he also had to be dubbed (covid didn't allow him to get in the studio and do it himself, as he usually does).

Watch it if: You are a yumejoshi and need material to self-insert into a costume drama FL's position, you are more determined to watch lyx look pretty in costume, all else be damned, than Samwise Gamgee was determined to make sure Frodo throws the One Ring in the flames of Mount Doom.

Princess Silver

Type: Costume, court drama, romance, some wuxia elements

Episodes: 58

Available at: YouTube, viki

What's the deal? Princess RongLe wakes up one day with amnesia (no, hear me out) to the news that she is to be sent to another kingdom and marry a prince she's never met for political alliance reasons (no, hear me out!). There, she is faced with unexpected revelations and finds herself looking for the truth while she gets embroiled with the aforementioned haughty prince, a shady general, and her (sometimes a bit too?) caring and overprotective brother.

On the one hand: (mild spoiler alert?) His character ends up stealing the show. FL can act and has good relationships with other female characters (arguably better than with any man in this, even in the chemistry department). Story and plot are quite decent. It's one of those rare cdramas that builds up as it goes instead of deflating in the last stretch.

On the other: LYX is 3rd ML in this, so if he's your main motivation to watch, be prepared for limited screentime, especially in the 2nd half of the drama (until the final 8-10 episodes where it's all about). If you're not into the FL with either 1st or 2nd ML, the first half can be a drag, like, personally I started appreciating this drama for real after episode 25-30.

Watch it if: You are patient, you like getting emotionally sucker-punched, you love a good, earthshaking final plot twist.

Ashes of Love

Type: Costume, xianxia

Episodes: 63 (or 60, depending on the version, content is the same either way though)

Available at: Netflix, YouTube, viki, WeTV, amazon prime

What's the deal? Bottom of the food chain grape fairy who was deprived of the ability to feel romantic love and her life was honestly better and carefree like that, trips and falls into a love triangle with overconfident golden boy Heavenly Prince Phoenix, and his older brother, abused wallflower Heavenly Prince Dragon. Things go very great and not complicated at all from there. :))

On the one hand: Xianxia 101, it hits all the items on the checklist. The lavish costumes, the sprawling sets and world building, the entanglement over multiple lives, mortal arc, immortal arc, demon realm arc. CG that still holds up well for the genre 5 years later. The epic and emotional OST (someone has yet to surpass Sa Ding Ding's 左手指月 for the title of "best cdrama ED song", i don't make the rules). Arguably, The most iconic 2nd ML in a cdrama, responsible for a significant chunk of its long-lasting chokehold on the audience. Even if you've never seen the drama, if you're in the asian media adjacent internet, you've most likely seen this:

On the other: Xianxia 101, a double-sided coin. All the clichés are here, and if you're not here for them you get aboard the struggle bus. The show's views on romantic feelings can be a bit, let's say, old fashioned, even for the genre's standards. If you're not into the main CP, you're in for an uphill battle of frustration. If you're Team Runyu prepare to hate almost everyone for there is no justice in this land. (In AoL one is either Team Runyu or Team Xu Feng, no middle ground, and if you're reading this, especially because you liked lyx as Tantai Jin, I don't see how you could end up Team Xu Feng, so I'm gonna run with this assumption). (in theory you can also be Team No One, but in practice if you're that, sitting through this entire drama must have been as fun as having a tooth pulled out with no anesthesia)

Watch it if: if you're any degree of a lyx fan, period. Runyu is a mandatory class.

Children's Hospital Pediatrician

Type: Modern, medical, romance

Episodes: 42

Available at: YouTube

What's the deal? Aspiring surgeon -slash- frustrating disaster girl makes a huge blunder on her first day of her hospital residency, and can only stay as a pediatrician. She hates it and makes her literal saint of a secret husband's life miserable. We watch as she gets to grow as a person to the detriment of everyone else's mental health. Secondary cast has subplots of various dating entanglements.

On the one hand: Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, hmmm..... well... there's a scene where lyx takes off his shirt for a physical exam, if that's a bonus (ep40, 27:13-28:05, you're welcome)? Queen Zheng Li is in it? I am scraping the bottom of the barrel here.

On the other: It's way too long for absolutely no reason, the FL is the most frustrating and irrational baby I've ever seen (which is by no means a low bar), 90% of characters who are not the FL get their development butchered to make her look better, 2/3rds of the cast are incompetent at acting and the other 1/3rd is being wasted in this mess. I am trying to be as objective I can in these, but I've got nothing for this one.

Watch it if: You have chronically low blood pressure that no medication can fix, you have watched literally everything else on the list and having a manic episode where you will chew on the walls if you don't look at Luo Yunxi's face in something you have never seen before, you want to watch some other mid drama, so you want to watch something worse first in order to appreciate the other drama more.

Fox in the Screen

Type: Costume, xianxia

Episodes: 22

Available at: YouTube, viki, amazon prime (as The Screen Foxes)

What's the deal? Orphan girl wins by drunken mistake a magical screen that houses 3 fox demon guys, they help her with her screen shop and also with crossdressing to pass the exam for the position of palace screen painter. She earns a grumpy boyfriend with a tragic past in the meanwhile.

On the one hand: It's short and goes fast, and in all honesty, considering it was made on a budget of 3 paperclips and a piece of gum, the story is much more concise and watchable than I, at least, personally expected. You get to witness the caterpillar stage of lyx on this path to guzhuang drama godhood. If you're one for tragic love stories there is one hiding under the DIY production. White Fox and the prince are a solid ship.

On the other: It is very much made on the aforementioned budget of 3 paperclips and a piece of gum, and it very much shows. Everything is rough, the costumes, the makeup, the editing, the acting for the most part. Having even half an expectation is the wrong way to approach this drama.

Watch it if: you have the heart of a mother watching her kids at the school play and admiring what a great job they are doing or if you are like Marie Kondo and love mess in an affectionate way.

Bonus: PhantaCity

PhantaCity was a tv show back in 2018, whose concept was making short plays and having actors perform them live in a single, do or die take for a studio audience. Luo Yunxi and Wu Jinyan, both with a background in ballet, are paired up in a short musical, acting as the hands of a newly repaired clock. If you ever wanted to see him dance, sing and act all in one thing, don't sleep on this. It's short and beautiful, and the official upload embedded above is subbed in English!

[tianmijun]

Till the End of the Moon Ep.40 (2023)

[tomb of tantai jin, ye xiwu’s husband]

[tomb of ye xiwu, tantai jin’s beloved wife]

[shijiujun]

Till the End of the Moon 长月烬明 Ending EP. 40 | 500 years later, with their debts to each other repaid, they would meet again.

God of War Ming Ye hearing this from the heavens: But I came first?! Your father is like ME get your timeline correct have you sent her to class yet Susu

[dramashii]

The Immortal Arc

Cang Jiumin and Li Susu: The Immortal Arc | Till the End of the Moon Ep 30-40

Summary: Dream Arc Mortal Arc

[salt-hag]

fall 2024 cdrama + kdrama check-in list

haven't done a check in/wrap up post of dramas watched in a while so wanted to do one before the end of the year ✨ hoping to have finished a lot of these and have a list of reviews at around new years

dramas watched

story of kunning palace (cdrama)

8.5/10 for me. This is my year of loving costume period cdramas and I kicked it off with sokp. Really enjoyed the time travel/redemption plot line and Bai Lu as a somewhat reformed evil empress.

the legend of shenli (cdrama)

9/10 for me. A little slow in places but this goes down in my list of fav drama romances. Badass and admirable female lead and quirky oddball male lead who simps for her (as he should). I found the fantasy somewhat goofy but lovably so. This is a *comfort* show for me now. Has the best happy ending/post finale last episode I've seen up to now.

the double (cdrama)

9.5/10 for me for the sheer melodrama. Is this technically a better drama than the legend of shenli? No, of course not. Is it entertaining as hell? Yes, so it's gets a .5 boost. Costume period one-woman's-revenge, absolutely delicious. Hilarious male lead who loves the drama of it all and is very handsome. I was telling a friend about this and she was confused. Weren't you just watching this earlier this year? No, dear reader, she had the revenge stuff confused with Story of Kunning Palace. I have a type, and that is conniving women getting what they want in beautiful period costumes while a handsome, competent man answers their beck and call and simps all the while.

currently watching

RIGHT NOW: Are You the One (cdrama) - ep 22/40

This started out as costume period brain popcorn for me but now there's intrigue and back-stabbing and a clever woman out-scheming men in power so. yeah i'm enjoying this i guess whatever...

RIGHT NOW: Cinderella at 2am (kdrama) - ep 3/10

I haven't watched a kdrama in a while and I wanted a comforting, brain-popcorn modern rom com. I think this will deliver.

My Journey to You (cdrama) - on ep 20/24

I am DETERMINED to finish the gorgeous scheming assassin ladies period drama. I WILL. It's just the main plotline made me snooze a bit at ep 20 so it's taking me a while.

The Princess Royal (cdrama) - ep 6/40

Snowfall (cdrama) - 17/24

dropped or on hold (I'm a mood watcher)

[on hold] Love Like the Galaxy part 2 (cdrama) - ep 12/29

[on hold] Meet you at the blossom (uncensored period BL, Thai) - ep 4/12

[on hold] Lost You Forever season one (cdrama) - ep 17/39

[on hold] In Blossom (cdrama) - ep 22/32

Another one I am DETERMINED to finish!! But I don't vibe with the main actress. I loved the one who played the female lead before the body swapping. Otherwise this drama has everything I would ever want: costume period murder mysteries, a very beautiful man who devotedly simps for his nice wife, a clever female lead with quirky interests, BODY SWAPPING AND IDENTITY SHENANIGANS.

[can't decide to drop or not] Only For Love (cdrama) - ep 21/36

I can't really stand modern-setting cdramas, I'm sorry. I was watching this one for Wang Hedi. I somehow made it to episode 21 despite the cringe. Might finish watching this while pmsing.

[can't decide] Tale of the Nine-tailed 1938 (kdrama) - ep 9/12

Idk why but I just found the plotline kind of boring?? I loved the extra character and world lore. But I had problems with the original TotNT too so.

[dropped] Till the End of the Moon (cdrama) - ep 20/40

This was gorgeous but I like sweet romance, I'm sorry. This was too dramatic for even me. I wanted Bai Lu to love her problematic malewife!!

[dropped] Miss Night and Day (kdrama) - ep 2/16

Loved the concept, found the show too painful to watch.

____

anyway hoping to get back into kdramas this fall or in 2025. we'll see!!

[dangermousie]

I finished the first four eps of The Last Immortal and it's honestly, a surprise delight.

The trailers were AWFUL and I only checked out due to my fondness for Zhao Lusi but while this is nothing groundbreaking, it is a really really fun watch. I wasn't annoyed for a second and you know how rare it is, especially when the tone is light?

It's a fairly typical xianxia story that benefits enormously from two things:

1 - The episode number limit. There are some dramas that have suffered enormously from it but most xianxia (Till the End of the Moon being a notable exception) could and now do benefit from that 40 ep limit. I've always found most of them incredibly bloated with insane cast of forgettable side characters, side quests and repetitions (did Ashes of Love or Immortal Samsara or Eternal Love of Dream need to be 63, 53, and 56 eps respectively? Nope, nope, and nope.) There are still too many side characters but they don't take over the screen anywhere near as much, because there is no time. This is glorious.

2 - This drama is proof that casting people who fit the roles and have great chemistry is crucial. I can almost feel the full body shudder I'd get under other circumstances from the immature, careless god and his wild, petty and equally immature spirit beast. But ZLS and WAY not only have lovely chemistry, they somehow manage to imbue their characters with such sense of fun and sweetness and good nature that I just root for them and want to make them sandwiches with crusts cut off. Like - I genuinely like them.

Anyway, this is fun!

[andoqin]

List of dramas that I am watching or want to watch, just for personal record reasons:

Cdramas:

The ingenious one (36/36): this drama has blown me away so far with its incredibly nuanced and sharp writing, its love stories between all the major couples and the absolutely magnificent cinematography. FINISHED verdict: HIGHLIGHT drama of the year for me so far. Smart, engaging, complicated, peak romance of all sorts, just what the doctor ordered tbh (overly long review can be found in my tags). 9.5

Chang Feng Du (40/40): I did not realise how close to the end I was. This drama is very pleasant and I adore our mains, but sadly except for a few highlights (the early beating gjs put on himself, the destruction of the gu family and the aftermath, the battle for wangdu) the writing hasn’t been able to keep the narrative tension up which is sad. FINSHED verdict: Very pretty and engaging in the beginning kinda loses me in the second half and then fizzles out emotionally, doesn't crash and burn but doesn't exactly stick the landing either 6.5

Gone with the rain (10/30): adore the gremlin4gremlin couple and from the spoilers I’ve seen not gonna adore much else

An ancient love song (1/16): incredible first episode and with only 30 min per ep and 16 eps in total this is gonna be a short fun ride I hope ( with lots of angst and tears naturally).

Here we meet again (18/32): started this for Wu Qian playing to type and Zhang BinBin being pretty but oh boy I’m struggling I just don’t care about the conflicts and in s surprising twist, I like the flashbacks to high school much much more, which is very funny if you think about the fact that the reason I started liking wu qian in the first place was because of her show stealing performance in the flashbacks of My Sunshine. I’ve been promised kisses in the near future so I’m gonna hold out till then but this might end up another drop.

Hidden Love (5/25): this one promises to be v sweet and kinda short but oh my god I have so many dramas on my plate rn so this might end up the first drop.

Till the end of the moon (22/40): I think I watched ep 1 when it started but then I got busy and now I am just staring at gifsets and crying, it’s definitely on the list to watch tho.

Heroes (6?/38): I started this a while ago, was really into it and then got busy… dammit. I might just rewatch the beginning so I can remember most of the set up for sure but man the visuals on this were so good, aaaa liu yuning.

Blood of youth (0/40): the last 12 months really have spoiled us with interesting looking wuxia dramas and this one is definitely on the list, I have been gifbaited once again.

Ray of light (0/30): usually hs dramas are something I avoid, but because I will not be watching the longest promise, for reasons, and bc @storge is a gifmaking temptress, this has made it on the list.

The legend of anle (0/39): Lmao trust YOUKU to screw up the release with bad subs only 1 ep even for vips and no released schedule… but at least I can put this on the backburner for now. Lmao should have known not to trust a youku dilreba drama, the tl has soundingly spoken and I'm gonna avoid this.

Ancient Detective (0/24): I was recced this by a friend when I mentioned my love for wuxia dramas, and since it’s almost shockingly short for a cdrama it’s on the list. EDIT: this got @purplehanfus seal of approval so it is def going up the list and since it's complete I'll probably at least watch it before the ongoing ones.

Butterflied love (0/22): see I barely made this post and already forgot about the screencap that got me started on writing it, the screencapa look great, but the drama is on mango, so who knows when I’ll truly be able to watch this

When I fly towards you (0/24): Well, I wasn't interested bc modern youth drama, but then I heard it described as "updated It Started with a Kiss" and... I'm weak? ISWAK was pretty much my crack gateway into asian dramas and while IDK if i could rewatch it today, something in me will always love this kind of story. Maybe it's like a quick palate cleanser in between since apparently eps are only about 30 mins.

Mysterious Lotus Casebook(0/40): CHENG YIIIII, in a possibly bromantic role? Or maybe het romance, I'll take it all. Plus I've already seen he's bleeding copious amounts as per his contract, so that's most of the checklist done.

Lost You Forever (0/??): because nature abhors a vacuum I apparently must have?? A minimum to watch pile and this actually and genuinely looks good??? A Yang Zi drama in 2023??? The mind boggles. Anyway I've been reading the recaps with delight, and am def going to watch this when part two airs in a couple of months but until then I have a thankful reprieve...

Kdramas:

See you in my 19th life (4/12): since kdramas release so slowly this is on the backburner but it does have some great gifsets that keep enticing meee

King the land (2/16): I am watching this for junho but it is kinda hard bc I have so much else on my plate and while I don’t mind a classic romcom type story I feel I need a bit more of an emotional hook

Story of the nine-tailed 1938 (0/16): so so many gorgeous and hilarious gifsets so little time. I loved season one so so much and the fact that this focuses on the brotherly relationship?? Extremely smart writing decisions were made!

The red sleeve (0/16): I blame @dangermousie for this she keeps reblogging angsts junho on my dash and I am but god’s weakest warrior.

Love tractor (0/8): gay himbo farmboy falls in love?? You bet this is on the list

Lady durian (0/?): ok this is only on the list for crack reasons but, daughter in law is in love with mother in law and both women are like 40+ truly kdramas have entered a new era and I kinda wanna be here for that

EDIT: Revenant (0/12): Kim Tae Ri in a spooky drama? POSSIBLY POSSESSED KIM TAE RI??? how could i forget to put her on this list, plus it was written by the Kingdom writer and I adore that drama plus it's only 12 eps which is smart in this case so... let's hope i get to it at some point D:

My dearest (2/20): I checked this out because it's got pretty much everything going for it from a production standpoint and boy did the first two eps deliver. This has got 2 seasons though so I'll probably wait until the second season is airing, since it won't be too long till season 2 or so the internet tells me.

My lovely liar (0/16): minhyun learned to act and I wanna see it happen!!

Jdramas:

Our dining table (2/10): ok this category is gonna be a bit shorter bc I haven’t watched too much drama recently but omg the gifs for this I am just crying thinking about it they look so cute??

Jack o‘frost (0/6): people have recced it and it’s short so here it is.

Utsukushii kare s2 (0/4): Season 1 was an unexpected delight so I hope s2 works just as well.

She loves to cook and she loves to eat (0/10): the manga for this is amazing (and hungry making) so I hope this adaptation holds up.

Ok this list is in no way exhaustive (well except for me being exhausted just trying toward this down) and probably subject to change ( I haven’t even looked at thaidramas or twdramas I gotta stop for now) but hopefully this will keep me on the ball and maybe I can add to it whenever a new tempting gifset crosses my dash��

[movielosophy]

till the end of the moon  | just us.

[ershisposts]

Of love and tragedy: Till the end of the moon

I don't even know how to start this to be honest...

Two people, three lifetimes, 10000 years.

Ohh the beauty of this drama....I don't usually rewatch dramas or shows but I know I will be rewatching this.

A brilliant blend of enemies to lovers trope mixed with a heart wrenching story and beautifully complex characters. A drama that will consume you to the point of no return. The intensity that this drama has is unparalleled to no other. Of course there were flaws but compared to the sheer magnificence in terms of the acting, OST, and visual effects, those flaws felt insignificant, at least to me.

The drama is very painful and the ending is not what we wanted and feels unfair to some extent but THAT'S 👏NOT 👏 AN EXCUSE FOR not recommending this drama to others because believe me, this is one of a kind masterpiece even for xianxia genre.

Of course, tantai jin deserved his happy ending (as it was stated in the book) and the drama hints that it leans towards the direction of the book but it was not shown (i guess for technical reasons of chinese censorship and new rule of shows not > 40 eps) but it also overlooks the fact that as long as sins exist the Devil God will always do. Practically speaking sins will not magically disappear with him so that is an oversight that the writers probably did not consider since this drama needed to be at least 5- 6 episodes longer as the story feels unfulfilled in that way. Not to mention the secondary characters arcs were not properly explained either.

I expand my thoughts on the ending in this post.

I understand the problem and I fully acknowledge it but if that's the reason someone does not recommend this then that's just a pity and a shame because it has everything you can ever want and more. It's a superbly well- acted, well-crafted and well-directed drama. This is not your standard fluff, all-is-well-in-the-end type of story. This is a mature, and at times quite dark tale. This is the type that doesn't make you only feel but also think and someone needs to see for themselves to understand it's depth.

[autisticbokutoenthusiast]

Tracking nuthphop through music 8 and 9

ep 7

- (1:25) there’s a song introduced when nont points the gun at phop (similar to last ep)

- (fields of fate- heath cantu 2:58) this serene string piece plays when nuth realizes phop is alive and well after nont releases him [i think the audio team might have mixed this to make the lows come out more, and lowkey i like it better this way]

- (expressions - heath cantu 5:44) get it heath! twice in a row!! anyway this piece plays while nont asks nuth if he’s the masked dog from the video. it’s reversed and delayed synth and keyboard notes that add this like mysterious yet light vibe to the scene. by this i mean it’s not mysterious in a dark or scary way but more in a curiosity and the unknown way

- (6:48) super low wind instrument sound, almost like if you took wood chimes and programmed it way out of its natural range

- (couldn't find the track 7:23) a simple but haunting piano melody plays over nuth and nants meeting in a flashback. as the flashback turns darker (nuth gets into nants sex and drug addiction, the argument they have over the lost drugs) bass, guitar, fuzzy synths, and drums get added in until the sound is quite epic and fitting of an action sequence. the song is kinda hard to make out over nuth and nant screaming at eachother but i think its interesting how they keep the foundational piano melody clear throughout the whole encounter. the song drops out when nant and nuth start arguing

- (chasing the truth - dream cave 9:04) the music is really faint here and while there are lots of layers, the majority of what we hear is the haunting piano melody. after nuth gets stabbed tho the rest of the instruments come in

- (faith in you - dex 1200 10:40) this really reverbed and sad piano and string piece plays over nants suicide video. the piano repeats a quite simple part, as does the violin but the two feel like two lonely voices.

(the smoke clears - wendel scherer 12:12) this haunting vocal choir piece plays as the chair falls and we see nants feet dangle and him struggle against the rope, while in the present nont cries. the song is haunting but it’s not overly sad in fact as nont starts to sob the chord progression becomes major and begins to resolve, in a way that sounds relieving, only to return to minor chords

- (fulmar - if water 22:50) this upbeat plucked guitar/ rock-ish track plays while nuthphop discuss the status of their relationship after the nant revelation. nuth being happy phop hasn’t broken up with him and phop saying there isn’t anything to be upset over. it’s also the track that played during the baddies scene before this. (the way this song and the camera angles focus on phop and zouey…. won’t spoil but for those who haven’t finished the series but those who have…. iykyk what connection im making right????)

- (นี่นอยด์นะ - korn and chat 24:30) the ending theme plays as nuth and phop finish they’re convo about they’re struggles living up to dating expectations in the gay community and how they’re happy they found eachother

- (chasing the truth - dream cave 28:17) plays during keen and nuths convo about hiding the dog mask and the party this song plays again (played earlier during and nuth and nant flashback 👀)

ep 9

(they werent in this ep till the end)

- (moon glow - helmut schenker 43:10) this pretty piano ballad plays while phop sulks over nuth not paying attention to him and the clip he wants to share, and then nuth trying to tease phop to get him to show it. it’s when phop explains the controversy that is tutor and jumps leaked sex tape and shows captains twitter for his secret clips that the song stops

- (44:49) this eerie piece is made of a sustained string note and a simple beat. i think it was mixed in house but it starts when nuth gets a call from keen and continues to soongs narration of breaking up with first

- (spiral geometry - cobby costa 48:40) this song technically starts playing when zouey tells nont there could be two dog masks but nuth is in frame and i think its pretty so im writing it down

(a certain shad of blue - paper twins 51:51) again this song plays while first and soong break up, but continues while nuth shows keen the clips captain has been selling of him

i think its interesting that we get a repeat track and repeat musician!!

[harocat]

DESTINED REVIEW:

Destined (Chang Feng Du)

Chinese Drama / 40 episodes / 2023

RATING: 7.75/10

I was totally IN LOVE with this drama until about ep twenty-eight. At that point, it would have been a 9/10 drama. It's not that the last arc does something really awful that's 'do NOT watch' level, but it really does lose steam when they get to the capital and the show switches to political machinations. It also, unfortunately, means that the heroine, who has largely driven the narrative at this point, is sidelined. She still does some very cool things in the last arc, but she's secondary to Gu Jiusu and a player in his story.

The last scene not even being the main pair, but instead being the new emperor being instated, really showed the shift in priorities this drama had. I'm not like 'wow drop this show at blank ep' like I am with Till the End of the Moon, but I do think that dropping it after the (extremely excellent) Battle of Youzhou episodes, before they head to the Imperial City, gives you a nicely wrapped up 9/10 drama, whereas continuing it can be a bit of a slog at times and does bring the score down. It's not very well executed at times, and the plot holes are hard to miss. You'll notice that while this drama had a ton of chatter, gif sets, etc., they almost dried up after they leave Youzhou. Well, I assume that's why.

You also spend a lot of time with old man politicians that you really wish you were instead spending with Gu Jiusu, Liu Yuru, and their band of sworn brothers and sisters.

The main cast is extremely likable, and the relationship between the leads is cute and so charming. I didn't think this would be my kind of show, because it looked like a romcom, but it's so well done those first few arcs, and the writing and character interactions are sharp and smart. It's not a sexy kind of chemistry, but instead it's sweet and gentle and very soothing and believable. Gu Jiusu starts out feeling like a shallow character, but he's a total wife guy who drinks a gallon of respect women juice every morning. Liu Yuru is a seemingly modest woman who discovers throughout the series that she has dreams and ambitions beyond what she ever believed she was capable of. I actually decided to watch this partly because one of the two writers for it is a new screenwriter who debuted with LBFAD, and I could definitely feel her (yes, her! and there are times you can tell a woman wrote this) touch in it. People on MDL have said the other writer has done some stinkers, and I half wonder if he had more say in the last arc of the series lmao.

Ending is a happy one. It's babies ever after which... fine. Not super my thing, but I'm glad they're happy and that they didn't have Liu Yuru stop doing business to stay at home and be a wife/mom or something egregious like that lol. She sticks to her passions throughout the whole series, even when she's sidelined.

[which-star]

Hi! I just reread the Spider-Women crossover and was wondering if you recommended any of the Spider-Verse events for Cindy/Gwen friendship content?

Another related question, do you recommend any of the Spider-Verse events for any specific Cindy Moon content?

Hi ink! I've been refreshing my memory on the spiderverse events for you and I have a relatively long answer that's honestly a really short TLDR: none of them are must-must-reads 😭 I'm going to go through every spidey event Cindy was apart of (that I could think of) so, if any of these interest you, you can check them out for yourself or ask me to summarize/condense in another ask because I would be happy too! Long post ahead!

For Silk specifically, she played the biggest role in the original spiderverse event where she was introduced. That's where she meets Gwen and Jess for the first time, so you get the background of the Spider-Women dynamic and there's some fun back and forths in the middle of all the running. Fair warning: this is before her solos so the Cindy/Peter undertones are still there and she's not really the Silk we know now. She's fresh out of the bunker, just became a hero, immature and reckless... and still being underestimated and babied --- just really different. (I can do more meta but I won't make this ask a ten page essay bc I love you guys). Still, I think it remains to be the spiderverse event where Silk plays the biggest role.

For that event, Spider-Woman Vol.1: Spider-Verse (Spider-Woman 2015 #1-4) will get you into the thick of it. It's right after the big group breaks off into a bunch of tie-ins and missions (The Amazing Spider-Man 2014 #9-10) so we get to focus on a narrower cast. I don't think you particularly need to read TASM when the Cindy-writing is... not great, but if you want further background on the event itself that's the starting point for the whole event. If you find yourself wanting to know the end after the Spider-Woman tie-in: TASM 2014 #12-15 is your answer!

Otherwise, I can't really name a particular big spidey event where Silk is particularly relevant. You can skip Spider-Geddon (the sequel event to Spider-Verse) since it's mainly centered around Otto Octavius and Miles Morales, but Cindy does pop up throughout Spider-Geddon #0-5 to say. like. two-three lines total. Peter had a mini spidey team-up for the Sins of Norman Osborn/Last Remains arc that Cindy participated in with the other 616-adjacent spideys + Gwen. Not a must read but you get to see them team up again! It's not the best Spider-Man run, but when the spideys show up it's right as it finally starts picking up so it's not as much of a slog like it would be if you were reading the whole Kindred arc.

Last Remains you can start reading at TASM 2018 #48, TASM: The Sins of Norman Osborn #1, TASM #49 and then TASM #50LR-54LR with #55. The issues denoted with LR follows the spidey team-up while the regular #50-54 just follows Peter.

The Edge of Spider-Verse 2022 event leads into the End of Spider-Verse event and issue #5 shows an alternate universe Silk from Earth-71490, which is fun! Marvel Voices: Spider-Verse 2023 has a Cindy short that was interestingly done even if the ending fell a bit flat for me. Spider-Verse Unlimited Infinity Comic (2022) is also, surprise, not really required reading but for the sake of being thorough her solo episode is #40 and she is part of the final act in episodes #49-53. I liked ep.51's paneling and you get a good grasp of the storyline Cindy's a part of with just reading the episodes mentioned above.

Oh! Speaking of Edge of Spider-Verse, Cindy does play a relatively big-ish role in the End of the Spider-Verse (Spider-Man 2022 #1-7) when they explore a world with Silk as the main character and Peter as her guy in the chair. BUT the writing is soo 2D, plot paper-thin, and it manages to mischaracterize everyone involved. Slott doesn't even touch Cindy till she becomes a plot point and even then it feels like he's scared of writing her after the backlash of him creating her (as he should be tbh). It's not worth reading but there are certain things established that might play a larger part later like Cindy being retconned into being the Queen totem instead of the Bride. If you wanna get mad at all the spider-girlies characterization, read this event LOL, just keep in mind that it's not a good representation of anyone and boooo Bailey.

Now as for the ones I'd recommend... to be honest, there's a lot where I liked the ideas there but not particularly enough to say you should go through the trouble to read. I would definitely recommend Edge of Spiderverse #5 because it's fun and cute and the Marvel Voices short since it's unique and both of those are easy to find/read. Events where Gwen and Cindy actually exchange a line or two are in Spider-Verse, Last Remains, the Infinity Comic (I think, either that or they share a panel lmaoo) and the End of the Spider-Verse where Gwen calls Cindy bossy pffft. I liked seeing what would've happened if Silk was the main spider-character in EotS and there's a Felicia cameo in LR where silkcat shares one panel and two lines ragging on Peter. As much as I don't like Silk's early depiction, I do think the original Spider-Verse event shares some interesting nuggets about Cindy so if you are a brave soldier you can tread the waters there. And if you made it this far... thanks for reading; you get a medal!!

[ghooostbaby]

me: hmm now at ep 10 of till the end of the moon, i'm excited for the conclusion it seems to be building to, it probably ends at episode 12 right? this has been a fun little series and now i can move on and do something else with my time :)

ep 40 of till the end of the moon in my youtube recommendations: *laughs cruelly*