Crash Landing on You

Episodes: 16

Synopsis: 

This drama follows the story of Yoon Seri, a South Korean Chaebol heiress, and Ri Jeong Hyuk, a North Korean soldier from an elite family. After a natural disaster and Yoon Se Ri disappears during a paragliding event, people did not expect her to have ended up in North Korea. Through using threats against Ri Jeong Hyuk and his soldiers of not protecting their area well and allowing her trespass into the country, Yoon Seri finds herself living at Ri Jeong Hyuk's home and well-protected while figuring out how to get back to South Korea. The two fall in love and go through many hurdles together both in North Korea and South Korea.

Review:

      I ugly-cried during this drama and went on an ultimate emotional rollercoaster. One minute I'll be laughing and another minute I'd be crying. It really hit me hard in the feelings in so many scenes, especially as things picked up from episode 10 onward. One thing I do want to mention is that this drama reminds me of Rooftop Prince. Instead of time travel separating the couple, we have a border separating Yoon Seri and Ri Jeong Hyuk. The three soldiers and the spy under Ri Jeong Hyuk's command also remind me of the little time travel squad in Rooftop Prince, especially in the scenes when they arrived in South Korea. This drama's army squad had more of a voice than the characters did in Rooftop Prince. I really liked that they all had their own strengths and flaws, and that the writers took the time out to strengthen the friendships between Seri/Jeong Hyeok and them on individual levels such as: letting the kdrama fanboy character meet his favorite actress Kwon Ji Won, having a big brother-little sister bullying relationship with one of the other characters, making clothes for them, and so forth. These characters also played to their own strengths as well, such as the spy utilizing his spy knowledge and skill to help out Seri and Jeong Hyuk. Another important thing I want to mention before diving into the details is that I'm really appreciative of many Korean dramas steering away from unhealthy love triangles and causing unnecessary tension between characters. For a period of time, Korean dramas used to use the love triangle trope in every drama and would portray one person as vulnerable and good, while the other as a homewrecker and a b*tch. It's not the most realistic trope and it is also quite frustrating to watch. Nowadays, a lot of dramas either have ditched the love triangle idea completely or have created love triangle dynamics where all three individuals involved are rational, empathetic, and willing to grow in other ways. 

      I want to start with the character of Seo Dan before I touch on the main leads. Seo Dan is a side character who is seemingly very cold and emotionless. As we get to know her and her pains of an unrequited love toward Ri Jeong Hyuk, we see that she has a soft side she hides behind a tough exterior. Her calmness despite feeling anxious and panicked makes viewers like her more in comparison to making her a character who is b*tchy and domineering toward Ri Jeong Hyuk. Her reasons for not wanting to let go and rationalizing why he didn't love her when she was in his life first was very understandable. It made viewers empathetic toward her, especially as she learned to let go and interact with the love interest meant for her. Now while, Seung Jun, the eventual love interest of Seo Dan, is a very complex character with a sad background--I found the ending so brutally harsh for Seo Dan. She has such bad luck with love, and the one time she felt appreciated and had her feelings reciprocated, it got taken away from her. Her internal strength really showed at the end as she remained on her own but it seemed really unfair for a girl like her. Likewise, I found Seung Jun's decisions to enter Seo Dan's life without realistic plans of actually being able to be with her a bit selfish. The more you watch, the more you realize that Seo Dan is pretty naive despite putting on a cold front. So if Seung Jun tells her that he loves her when she's interested, she would 100% put her all into the relationship up till the very end. Thus, I found Seung Jun selfish as he knew he wasn't safe to stay in North Korea or South Korea, and yet made so many promises of coming back for her one day and so forth. Seo Dan might have already been stuck on him by then but I feel like it'd be harder for her to move on when she knows that they had talked about this promise of him coming back one day for her. His last thoughts as a character involved with the idea of feeling sad and happy that someone would be crying for him and thinking of him. In my opinion, it's really not fair to Seo Dan and she really did deserve better--whether it's having her happily ever after with Seung Jun or moving on to find something better for herself. The girl just wanted to be loved!! But also our secondary relationship between Seo Dan and Seung Jun was very fun to watch as they shared a lot of chemistry in the bits and pieces of screentime that they got...which is very impressive since I was also very emotionally invested in their ending.

           As for our main leads, the chemistry was pretty good. I think there was a healthy balance of comedy, drama, and emotional scenes (especially since the little army squad was so funny). I really enjoyed the relationship dynamic between Jeong Hyuk and Seri but I got to say Jeong Hyuk really be risking it all for Seri. He puts his life on the line again and again. Maybe that's why I like their relationship dynamic so much because it gives me unrealistic expectations of men and of love. But honestly, that's what makes life fun---the unrealistic expectations (haha). I did find some scenes toward the end unrealistic. I genuinely don't think that they would've ever met again. I can also understand why they had to go back to North Korea because they have responsibilities toward their own families and so forth. But I feel like once they are back, Seri would not be reunited with Jeong Hyuk. Likewise, the last few interactions via Jeong Hyuk's pre-written texts for Seri made me very grateful that long-distance relationships will never be as bad as a North Korea-South Korea LDR (LOL). It was also great casting for this drama, especially since they have these big-shot actors playing in the main leads. They also have an impressive cast in this drama that has previously featured in dramas and films such as When the Camellia Blooms, Romance is a Bonus Book, Parasite, and so forth. There was also quite a few cameos from big names as well -- Kwon Ji Won appeared as one of the NK soldier's favorite Korean drama actress and even performed a hilarious and nostalgic scene tying to Stairway to Heaven (a really old drama lol). Kim Soo Hyun also cameoed as North Korean defector, and I think he did a great job in highlighting the struggles of being North Korean in South Korea. His scraggly appearance also reminded me of his character from Dream High (haha).

        I also liked the separate clips at the end of each episode that provided more depth to the story. I feel like character development is insane for all the characters. None of them are truly unlikable except for maybe the main antagonist that was obsessed with tearing down Ri Jeong Hyuk. I really enjoyed this drama, I wouldn't go into this expecting a very realistic drama. That's because the entire set-up is like a classic kdrama setup to allow you to have unrealistic expectations. First of all, it is based in North Korea which in general we all know little about. It involves an unlikely romance that crosses borders and even has a hint of fate being involved. The girl survives a typhoon and winds up alive in North Korea (how?) There's a lot of action scenes where the main characters just do not die. There are unlikely reunions throughout the drama, and unwavering loyalty to one another despite not knowing each other for long. We got a chaebol-heiress/entrepreneur as one of the characters and the Captain of the guard from an elite North Korean family on the other end. It's not meant to be a realistic drama but it is extremely entertaining and satisfying to watch. I felt like the first half was about world setting and getting us invested in the relationship, and the second half was when everything was truly kicking off. Toward the second half, I missed the first half. But when I was first watching the beginning few episodes I found it slow at times. But when I finished the drama, I found myself watching those beginning episodes again. 

Also, important to know is that North Korean defectors in real life helped give advice for this drama. In many ways, this drama was highlighting North Korean societies in ways we haven't had a chance to see before. They also didn't make North Korea seem evil but rather portrayed them in a more positive light despite being extremely behind in cultural and technological advancements & despite the political environment.

Overall, highly recommend. I really enjoyed it. Here's some scenes and episodes that I liked the most: 

Ep 10 - Man Bok's apology about being part of the brother's death - his guilt made me cry 

Ep 12- The village ladies helping each other out, reunion with the North Korean army in South Korea, watching them be shook at the world of South Korea, the birthday scene

Ep 13-By far the best episode, a lot to unpack-- North Korean kids buying things with her black card -- so cute and funny such as the jeans scene; Hyeok getting jealous of Seri dating guys before; Kwon Ji Won scene; epic fight scene and the scene of them running up to Seri bleeding makes me so sad
The frenemy character makes me so happy b/c he's such a big brother character -- always bullying her but with a soft heart too 

Ep 14- the intimacy of the hug when she wakes up and the way the guy friends rushed to see her

the spy putting spy devices to check on her while she was at the hospital -- everyone playing to their own strengths, distinct characters

Foods to try in Seoul, Korea!

This past summer I went to Seoul, Korea for a week to visit my childhood best friend! Here are some food pics (unfortunately couldn't share all of them). But please let me know if you visit any and let me know of any cool places as well that I can go to when I visit again next time! Yay food places!

Foods to Try

             

• Try fine dining! The picture on the left is from when I went to Ondabile. It's not crazily priced but it definitely gives you the fancy setting that makes you feel beautiful. I want to recommend this because I had a great time there but after recent google searches, it appears it has closed. But I'm not sure how accurate that information is so please look into this further if you want to try! The address is: South Korea, Seoul, Yongsan-gu, Hannam-dong, 28-2 B2
• Street food is a must-try! You can find them in many shopping areas or tourist locations. This picture was taken at Myeongdong and the women running the stand appeared in every one of my friend's stories when they visited. 

• The pink drink on the left can be found in almost all convenience stores in Korea (the most common one I saw being CU Convenience store). There are many amazing drinks from grape juices to teas but this is ALCOHOLIC!!! We all know the standard soju drinks from Korean dramas but this is a peach drink with 2% alcohol. It's very light but be careful to not buy this for your children-- it's definitely a great treat if you're of age though! 
• The drinks on the right are absolutely delicious as well. They are from the Style Nanda Pool Cafe in Myeongdong. Matcha is a go-to if you want to play it safe but I loved the hibiscus drink!

                  

• Line Cafe drinks! - located within the Line Friends Store 
• Yoogane Chicken Galbi - Myeongdong  - this was so delicious and there are many different chains that make amazing dak galbi! You just got to find it! 

• Insadong Korean Art Street has a lot of street food. These are just some examples such as sikhye (rice drink) and squid! I personally really liked Insadong because I love when there are a lot of food stands and mini restaurants/cafes all around. It's a lot of fun. The poop cafe is located here as well as dragon beard candy!! I bought two boxes of dragon beard candy and that is another must-try! 

• My hotel was located in Gangnam and here were just some amazing food places that were walking distance. One is the Kakao store which has the Kakao cafe inside. I absolutely love Apeach so I went to town as you can see. 
• Then there was this ramen place called Maru Ichi - they have single stalls where you can eat ramen and it cost around $10 USD so it was pretty worth. It's not very Korean but it was comforting and light for when I was jet-lagged. 
• Tanghulu - This classic Chinese treat is typically made with Hawthornes. However, in Korea, they put their spin on it and they use strawberries. It's a bit too sweet for my taste and can get sticky since strawberries are very juicy compared to hawthorns. But it was definitely quite an experience! I don't recall where I saw this but a lot of street markets sell them and it's not hard to find! 
• More ddukbokki - did you really go to Korea if you didn't have ddukbokki? This was located near my hotel in Gangnam as well and it is a chain throughout Korea selling cheap and fast food. You can get ddukbokki and kimbap here. It's called Kimbap Heaven! 
• Dkore- this place was probably one of my favorite meals in Korea. Their kimchi jigae was addicting and I couldn't stop eating despite being full. Please go here and eat at this amazing place! It tastes amazing! 

                

There's obviously a lot more that was consumed. But finding food in South Korea is the least of your worries! There is amazing food everywhere and you can make a meal out of anything -- from restaurants to cafes to convenience stores!

When the Camellia Blooms

                                                

Episodes: 20

Synopsis:

This is a thriller following the story of Oh Dong Baek, a single mother who is running a bar called Camellia. Oh Dong Baek is an attractive, timid, and soft-spoken woman trying to make a living to raise her young son in the fictional town of Ongsan. Unfortunately, she spends a few years getting bullied by the locals as she is judged for being a single mother, for running a bar, and for subconsciously attracting the men in the town with her beauty. Six years after she moved to the town, she meets Yong Sik. He is a simple-minded man with a passion for justice. Upon meeting Dong Baek and watching her stand up for herself, he falls for her and begins to pursue her. He defends her from the aunties that look down on her, encourages Dong Baek to be confident, and attempts to be there for her son. As the two begin to fall in love, they are also faced with great opposition from many people in the town and outside of the town. Dong Baek's ex-boyfriend and the father of her child also begins to reconnect with Dong Baek as he finds out about the existence of his son. As Yong Sik fights against many odds to be with Dong Baek, he also works relentlessly to protect Dong Baek from a notorious serial killer that has decided to name Dong Baek as his next victim. 

Review:

        This drama is very addicting and well-made. I couldn't stop watching once I started. The character of Oh Dong Baek greatly intrigued me as she wasn't weak because of her timidity, and her softness actually provided validity to when she would stand up against injustice. I loved her relationship with her eight-year-old son and her son definitely made me very emotional by how mature and defensive he is toward life and toward his mother. There were some interesting themes as well. For instance, one was that it doesn't matter how perfectly constructed your life appears on social media or from an outsider's perspective, happiness can only be felt from the inside. This showed a lot in Kang Jong Ryul's social media-obsessed wife. It also showed in the way Dong Baek and the villagers' lives were actually very happy, wholesome, and simple despite not making much. The family that the town created to protect one another and make sure Dong Baek was okay toward the end was heartwarming. It made me really appreciate the importance of family and friendship, and how it is never the materialistic things in life that matter. Likewise, it also showed that forgiveness is needed to move on in life (along with confidence, happiness, and so forth). Dong Baek always had a grudge against her mother who abandoned her at a young age. However, it takes episodes and a lot of time to reconcile a relationship that both wanted to mend. It also took time to fully understand the reasoning for the "abandonment," and it was refreshing to have Dong Baek finally let go of her resentment. It did get frustrating with how many times Dong Baek guilt-tripped the poor woman about leaving her as a child BUT I have to acknowledge that that must have been a traumatic experience for a child to go through and that we are viewing this situation from the lenses of an adult who already knows that Dong Baek ends up okay and why the mother did what she did back then. 

              As for the romance side of this drama, I loved the character of Hwang Yong Sik. He is so simple-minded, wholesome, and devoted. He is actually a dream man, even if he appears like a country bumpkin in some regards. However, he treats Dong Baek so genuinely and works so hard to protect her. In that sense, I was in love with watching him court her and wait for her. His patience, love, dedication, and loyalty was unwavering throughout the entire series. It was a pleasure watching the two warm up to each other and go through many hurdles. They did not give off a light-hearted, cutesy couple vibe but rather a much more mature and contentful vibe. I think a big part of that is to play into the idea that this is the love story between two adults, one who is also a single mother. It was also nice to see Yong Sik play a role in Kang Pil Gu (the kid)'s life because a lot of dramas that involve kids tend to forget and cast aside the child for the sake of the romance. This drama made sure to have Pilgu as a strong component as to whether this relationship worked and how it would work. I really appreciated that aspect and I liked how the adults worked hard to try to understand and make the child feel as comfortable as possible. It was also nice to see that they didn't make the ex-boyfriend out to be an awful person but rather someone that regrets many things in his past, wants to be a better person and tries to make up for it in ways that may not actually be helpful. It was very easy to empathize with many characters in this story. 

             I am a bit conflicted about the thriller side of this drama. The serial killer that was constantly threatening and scaring Dong Baek throughout the series definitely gave this drama thrill and it greatly intrigued me to keep watching. However, it also gave me a lot of anxiety because I hate the ideals of the "joker" in this story. He writes these things to random women and individuals telling them to stop being a joke, but he doesn't have a basis for any of it. A clear example of this, outside of Dong Baek, is Hyang Mi. She seems to be a very flirtatious individual who uses uncomfortable situations to her advantage. She doesn't know her boundaries and tends to steal small things from customers, such as their lighters. In many regards, she would be a perfect candidate for the joker to murder. However, you empathize with her greatly as you realize that no one deserves the right to judge another's life based on what it appears like on the outside. You learn about her motives in life and her struggles and pains. And I think that was a good perspective to add to the series to further invalidate the role the serial killer had and also have us, as an audience, be more upset as to why certain people were targetted and judged for small things. In a way, it is a reminder to us to be better people and to be less judgemental. 

            I didn't fully like how it was resolved in my opinion. Toward the end, it was pretty obvious who the killer was in my opinion. And I think that for all individuals involved, it was such an easy way to resolve and catch the criminal. I feel like there's a stronger sense of anger and injustice, and I wished that I could've seen the ultimate punishment be delivered. However, I do not mind the resolution we received in this drama. And one more thing I liked: this drama was edited very beautifully and I loved the way the story dives into the past and future throughout the episodes allowing for a more in-depth understanding of all that is happening and of all that will happen. 

           All in all, great drama! Highly recommend! You can find this on Netflix. 

Love Alarm

Episodes: 8 

Synopsis:

This short drama is about a world/society where you can no longer hide your feelings for someone. There is an app that has become the center of everyone's lives called "Love Alarm." It syncs with your heart and will notify the person you like that they have an admirer within a 10-meter radius around them. It changed the way people confess, date, get married, and so forth. This story follows around three characters that become very disenchanted with the idea of wearing their hearts on their sleeves. 

Review: 

       I saw a lot of hype on Youtube and the internet about this drama. I think a big part of that hype is that this drama is available on Netflix, which makes it easier for many populations to watch this drama or come across. Likewise, it is very short and quick to get through--targetting some of the main things that cliche Korean dramas go for: the poor female lead, the rich and arrogant male lead, the unselfish and loving second lead, and a lot of love drama. I really wanted to get into this drama and enjoy the fanmade videos online, and I wanted to also just relax and enjoy a standard/stereotypical Korean drama with the added twist of the "Love Alarm." 

         Unfortunately, I did not enjoy this drama. I feel that 8 episodes were too short to allow the audience to really get into it. It didn't even build the world and society very well considering it kind of reflected a Black Mirror-Esque dystopia. I wasn't sure how this love alarm really synced with your heart (did technology get that advanced by this time that feelings can be converted digitally? How was the app created? Why do people make a big deal about it if it is an app you can choose to download/not download?)

           I also did not enjoy any of the characters. I thought Kim Jojo was pretty shady for leading people on (even if their love alarm doesn't sound--that is still playing with a person's emotions). She consistently led her ex-boyfriend on from the first two episodes despite actively knowing she wasn't interested in him, was avoiding him, and was even kissing Sun Oh when she was still in a relationship. It just made her character seem kind of sleazy. It did mention in the first episode that the kiss between her and Sun Oh didn't mean anything because it was a "kiss without feelings." However, it really doesn't matter as much whether there were feelings present or not. It's just hard to watch when it was only the first episode and I wasn't attached to her or empathetic towards her. It also made me despise Sun Oh's character. Everyone is so caught up on the fact that the actor is a beautiful man...but the character he's playing, I'm sorry I cannot. He just seemed like he wasn't approaching Kim Jojo with the right intentions. It seemed that he was trying to keep his hyung to himself and that he was being selfish above all else. He seemed to be playing around with everyone around him. So it was really hard for me to see them act awkward around each other and flirt with one another after that incident. Like...I thought it was a kiss with no feelings? Then move on with your life? 

          But of course not.

          This is a Kdrama, and they end up dating. 

           I could not take their relationship seriously. I did not like the dynamics they had. I couldn't feel the chemistry very well. I have watched Kim So Hyun act in numerous dramas since she was a child actress--but her role in this drama was a huge disservice to her acting abilities. Everything felt stunted and a little too dramatic for my liking. And none of the characters were that likable! And I hated the way their society stressed so much on how the Love Alarm was harming people and hurting people who weren't getting liked. It just seemed so extreme with so little context about the world that they live in, how this app took hold, and then the context and influence it holds. 

             The second lead Hye Yeong aka Sun Oh's Hyung was probably the best character in this drama. He was genuine and the ultimate perfect package in that he is willing to wait for Kim Jojo, he takes his time to truly understand her, supports her decision when she decides to be with Sun Oh, and doesn't judge her through all the low points in her life. I think he honestly deserved better than to be pining for a girl that can't get over arrogant/narcissistic Sun Oh. 

All in all, this drama has shady characters with shady morals and a bad plotline/poor world-building. I do not recommend this drama to anyone...unless you're just curious.  

Parasite (Movie)

This movie was absolutely insane. If you haven't watched it, I would highly recommend it. I think it is best to go in blind (which was what I did), and so if you haven't watched it yet please do not read further!

          I am still not sure how I feel about this movie but I did enjoy it. The beginning started off feeling one type of way only to end on a fairly disturbing note. The entire movie had dark undertones throughout but it wasn't toward the end that this unsettling feeling started to take over. This movie is kind of a social commentary on class and class discrimination. The parallels and contrasts between a low socioeconomic family and a high socioeconomic family were hauntingly apparent, and it really made you question a lot of the things that were happening. I really enjoyed the metaphorical and symbolic aspects of this movie, and how they really played into the movie title of Parasite.

This is the one movie where I don't want to go in-depth as I believe it will spoil the experience for many. At the same time, I am still having trouble putting into words how I feel about this movie or what parts struck me greatly.
All in all, this was an intense watch. I enjoyed it. This definitely is living up to the hype.

Goodbye My Princess aka Dong Gong 东宫

                                              

TW: toxic/abusive relationship 

Episodes: 52 

Synopsis:

       This drama follows the beloved ninth princess of the Western Liang Kingdom, Qu Xiao Feng. She is an extremely happy, free-spirited girl growing up in the plains and without the rules and regulations many other noblewomen are faced with. She starts off with a crush on her mentor, Gu Jian, and attempts to rebel against the arranged political marriage she is to have with the Crown Prince of Li Dynasty. However, little did she know that this attempt to break free from this marriage, she would meet the "love of her life" and enter a tumultuous relationship with him.
         The man she meets unexpectedly is the fifth prince of the Li Dynasty, Li Cheng Yin. With a personal agenda of seeking revenge on the clan that killed his brother and gaining political footage in the power struggle for the title of the crown prince, he seeks help from his cousin (who happens to be Gu Jian--Xiao Feng's mentor!). He disguises himself as an ordinary tea merchant called Gu Xiao Wu and begins to work on winning Xiao Feng's trust. Xiao Feng is naive and extremely genuine in her friendship with Li Cheng Yin and it moves him greatly. He feels extremely guilty about tricking her along the way to seek revenge against her grandfather and grandfather's clan but continues to follow through with his political aspirations. The two fall in love with one another, and Li Cheng Yin manages to infiltrate Dan Chi, the kingdom ruled by Xiao Feng's grandfather, and even wins the trust and respect of her family. On the day of their wedding, Li Cheng Yin attacks and Xiao Feng is left to witness the death and downfall of her Grandfather and his kingdom.
         Betrayed and hurt, she is unable to recover from the betrayal and hurt. She discovers the mythical River of Oblivion and jumps into it in hopes of forgetting all that happened. Li Cheng Yin jumps in after her and the two end up forgetting these memories together. However, their fate continues as everyone around them continues to lie to them to allow for the arranged marriage Xiao Feng has originally planned to go smoothly. Li Cheng Yin becomes the crown prince and she is married to him. As the two completely forgot their past, the two butt heads, bicker, and face many other difficulties in their relationship. With time, the two slowly begin to fall in love but the memories of the past begin to resurface and catch up to the present. What happens then? 

Review:

Look at how beautiful the costume attire is!!

         I have a lot of thoughts in regard to this drama as I have found myself rewatching this time and time again. Each time I experience a spectrum of emotions and I often have conflicting feelings about the way this plotline is structured, how unhealthy the relationships are, and also what situation is best for all the characters. I do have to say that I really enjoyed this drama though. I loved the tragedy, the aesthetics, the dynamics between the characters, and so forth. I often characterize a drama as good or bad depending on their ability to make me emotional/make me cry/make me think. This series had so many tragic scenes that I was constantly in my feels; and with such strange character relationships and plotlines, it also made me think from a more objective, feminist standpoint. Regardless, from an objective standpoint, I want to talk about why I enjoyed this drama and also highlight why this show is so complicated and unhealthy to the characters and ways in which we can recognize it in our own personal relationships. With a critical eye into looking at this drama, I do question why I love it so much...but I guess you can say it's kind of a guilty pleasure!
           I was first drawn to this drama after listening to the OST playlist. The music is extremely fitting as it invokes sadness through the beauty and softness of the song. The lyrics are also often tied to the plot which made it more beautiful with every listen. Every time I listen to the OST I can't help but want to rewatch some of my favorite scenes in the drama. I don't know how anyone listens to "Casualty of Love" or "First Encounter" without wanting to cry. Not to mention, the aesthetics of this drama were amazing and it pulled on all my heartstrings! My ultimate decision to watch this drama, however, was after I watched a fanmade video that highlighted the entire plot of the drama. (I don't really mind getting spoiled, to be honest--often times such things make it easier to decide if I want to watch a drama or not, especially with limited time to do anything). I was intrigued by why there seemed to be so many deaths, sorrow, and intense emotions in this drama fanmade video. I came into this drama with expectations to cry, and it did not disappoint.
          Some of my favorite scenes are the most intense ones--filled with betrayal, grief, and anger. For instance, the scene at the beginning of the drama where he basically kills off her entire clan for his personal political reasons was so intense. The grief and betrayal that was felt by the female lead were so palpable through the screen. The acting is amazing because she didn't react immediately to him being the reason her family was killed off. She started off worrying about him, slowly piecing it together, and then freezing up at the realization before lashing out at him. The small details like this make the scenes so much more intense and the music was often haunting and chilling when paired with those crying scenes. Then there were those many scenes at the end where beloved characters are dying off and truths were unraveling.

            I do want to point out that this drama is based on an internet novel, and it is important to note that the male lead is actually written to be even colder and ruthless in the novel than how he was portrayed in the drama. In the drama, it appears as though he doesn't really want to hurt her despite continuing with his own political ambitions. However, in the book, he actively decides to ambush her Grandfather's clan on the day of their wedding and very clearly prioritizes his political ambitions over her. Regardless of the drama trying to paint him in a better light, this was the first drama that I watched where there was so much hatred toward the male lead character from the fans. Many comments talked about how men ain't sh*t, how Xiao Feng (the female lead character) can find someone better, and also why Gu Xiao Wu/Li Cheng Yin (the male lead character)  is the way he is.   

The casting for the female lead was very well-done as her appearance and child-like gestures at times draw the crowd in with her innocence. Her eyes, always filled with emotion and with how clear and sharp they were, also conveyed so much to the audience that made it easy for many fans to empathize with her and feel protective of her. While it was an impressive cast, I definitely felt like the female lead greatly out-performed her fellow castmates. Her acting, in comparison to the male lead, was significantly better and her crying scenes always hit me where it hurts. Li Cheng Yin/Gu Xiao Wu's crying, on the other hand, often felt a bit monotone as his expressions are always the same pained look. Even at the ending scene, his crying just felt strained and lacked emotion. It's hard to explain because he's crying and putting it all into it, but I believe acting is often portrayed in subtle gestures and through the eyes...and something was just a little lacking in those scenes. And I feel really bad for saying this because I have watched the BTS of this drama and he nearly passed out filming this crying scene. It's not to say that I didn't feel anything from his performance. Like it still made me feel things because of the storyline but I wasn't particularly moved by his performance. His acting in the intense jealousy scenes toward the end of the drama and his expressions during their cute, loving moments were on point though!

Now for the plot! From my personal experience and perspective, I struggle to understand why this romance and this love was so hard for Xiao Feng to let go of. Like it was so easy for her to move on from Gu Jian who has consistently treated her well throughout the drama but yet she couldn't move on from this toxic relationship with Li Cheng Yin--even after he kills her family and the people she cares about, even after he constantly subjects her to emotional pain and loneliness, and even after he has proven his selfishness over and over again. I think this drama did a great job in showing what an abusive relationship looks like where the girl keeps staying for the "good memories" and for the possibility it'll be better when all signs are pointing otherwise. At the same time, with the setting this drama takes place...she is in an arranged political marriage with him which means she actually CANNOT get out of this situation. It really makes you wonder about the struggles women in such arrangements endured back in history.

       Likewise, the intense jealousy Li Cheng Yin felt and the extremes he was willing to go to keep her by her side felt extremely abusive as well. He shows abusive characteristics in the way he isolates her from those she loves--and it's harder to see this than if we were watching a modern-day drama because in this drama he has reasons for killing off her family and her mentor, even if the reasons are self-serving and selfish.

But by him doing so, he doesn't just break her trust and betray her, he leaves her with no one but him, isolating her from a life she used to know. In a way, I agree with the general public that the ending is sad but that it is the only way this story could've ended. Knowing that this is a romantic drama and a CHINESE HISTORICAL FANTASY drama, there was no way these two would part ways and move on with their lives. Their fate would forever be intertwined, and so Xiao Feng had to die for this story to end. And I feel it is also the best form of punishment for Li Cheng Yin to live with that on his consciousness and reflect on the ways he's mistreated her both intentionally and unintentionally. I think it was also a really good sign that the audience enjoyed this drama but HATED THE RELATIONSHIP XIAO FENG HAD WITH LI CHENG YIN!! It shows that the audience is viewing this with a critical eye--where they enjoy it because it is an addicting drama but are able to recognize toxic patterns in the relationships. I love these changes, especially because a lot of us easily ignored toxic signs in dramas like Boys Over Flowers (which took place in modern times). This just shows that we are understanding what's for our entertainment enjoyment and what is okay/not okay in real life. I also really appreciated the mini epilogue episodes this cast made showing how their love life continues in their modern-day incarnations. In these mini-scenes, it shows a loving and healthy relationship between the two characters in modern-day--not reflecting anything like the relationship we saw in the actual drama.

All in all, I greatly enjoyed this drama! It definitely made it on to my favorites list of 2019.

However, I highly suggest that viewers pay attention to the trigger warning I have listed above and to view this drama with a critical eye! Just because a drama is well-made and has a compelling plot doesn't mean that certain aspects of abuse should be ignored! I wanted to acknowledge this aspect to provide some depth to this review as well as educate certain features of abusive relationships. I believe it is through dramas we can live multiple lives but we can also learn from dramas what we want in a significant other and what we do not!

Most of the audience have expressed negative opinions on the male character and on the relationship while still loving this drama! It is 100% okay to like this drama as long as we are aware of these relationship dynamics! This is still an addicting drama with many common drama components as seen in many historical dramas/Chinese dramas, and it is interesting that I'm pointing out these issues in this relationship dynamic when there have been many other unhealthy relationships portrayed in dramas. I wanted to highlight this as I do not condone this sort of abusive behavior in any of these dramas and especially so as this was taken to a more extreme level. At the same time, it also allows us to look back on other dramas where such features of toxic masculinity and abuse can be seen! It shows the growth I have had from watching dramas as pre-adolescent to watching dramas today as an adult. There are a lot more things I pay attention to, and I hope this gives this review an interesting take!

Fall in Love at First Kiss (Movie)

Movie

         I recently found out that there was a movie that was recently made based on the "It Started With A Kiss" plot. Now, I have watched as many versions of this story as possible. I've seen the Taiwanese drama, the Korean drama, the Japanese drama and all of their sequels. So when I heard that a movie was made based on this plot--best believe I was going to go and relive my middle school memories by watching it. This movie was so cute and it covered the main parts of the story. However, as it is a movie, it couldn't include everything. I think it is such a pity that this was a movie instead of a drama because the actors in this movie would've done amazingly in a series. Not to mention, their chemistry and romance was addicting and felt fresh (which is amazing considering that this plotline has been used numerous times in dramas across all countries). 

         As it is well-known the girl character is supposed to be "dumb" and below-average in many ways. While Xiang Qin still played that foolish girl who only focused on pursuing Jiang Zhi Shu, she also had more of a backbone in this movie version. It was really nice to watch her be able to say "I'm walking away from this" because she recognizes it is what she needs rather than focusing on what she wants. I think that was a great touch to this movie even though the ending clearly ends with the two of them together. In numerous other studies, Xiang Qin never really walks away on her own with that kind of strength and I really appreciated seeing that side of her character. I think it also allowed me to see her more as an equal and recognize the ways in which Zhi Shu respects her and learns from her rather than forcing the idea that he should be respecting her and learning from her. 

Super cute movie. The music was great. 

And I love that one quote where they ask: "what is the probability that the person you like also likes you?" because this was even portrayed in the OST lyrics that stated "I like you and I like my probability with you."

Another quote was her talking about how in her world, he will always shine bright but his world moves on even without her presence. The way she talks about him so full of pure love and respect allowed me to see her love for him as more genuine instead of infatuation (which I've suspected in previous dramas before).