Aoi Ryosuke may have a devil’s curse, but he is terrified of his own abilities, while his counterpart Ryuzaki Shinji is a devil himself, with the gift of god. When they are brought together however, the game really begins.
From beginning to end, the mystery behind their powers drives the plot of the drama: just how much they know about each other and what are the implications of their gift. Is it a curse or blessing, or both, and how are they to be used? What is their purpose on this world? While a larger mythological background is hinted at, I actually appreciated how the drama focused more on the immediate repercussions. This isn’t a tale of gods and demons. It’s the story of two men who behind their powers are just as human as you or me. Their entanglement with Detective Hasebe gives this even more of a humanly-backing as she struggles to learn more about them - to trust or fear, protect or arrest.
“If I were able to change this world, would God be the only one who could allow that? If humans were able to hold God’s powers, would they be able to change the world?”
Thus begins the story as Ryuzaki stands overlooking a city drenched in rain. The camera pans down to reveal Aoi,as he walks into the nearest police station and turns himself in for murder:
“Coming here on my own makes the distinction, of what sort of person I, who has taken away that life, will become.”
The Dog of Orthros: The name comes from Greek mythology. Orthros was a two-headed dog beast (brother of the more famous 3-headed dog Cerberus), and minion to a giant. I'm sure other comparisons could be made between drama and myth, but there's not much known about the dog. Rather, it's more interesting to me that nowhere in the show does it say which man, the angel or the demon, is the actual beast. Both are just two parts of the same whole.
Not to ignore the drama’s political plotline (because, in this kind of scenario unfortunately one just has to exist), but that part was a little more on the predictable side of things – the only questionable outcome is which man, if either, would align with the greedy and power-hungry parties and politicians.
What was more subtly done I thought were many of the side characters, including Detective Hasebe’s young daughter (who often seemed to understand important things better even than her mother), and delinquent youth Kumakiri Masaru (Yaotome Hikaru).
Should you watch it?
I could barely turn away from this drama, and not even the political plotline bored me for more than a few minutes at a time. Like most Jdramas, the romance may be a tiny bit lacking, but the relationship between the three main players was anything but lacking in overall chemistry. The thriller/mystery aspects were also extremely well done (if not completely perfect) but enough that even knowing the outcome, I’d be likely to watch it again.
Read more (with pictures) on my blog:
http://shinealightrose.blogspot.com/2013/03/jdrama-review-orthros-no-inu-2009.html
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This show was one of the most surprisingly amazing shows I have ever watched. I was so reluctant to start it because I don't really watch high school dramas very often, but this show was just so amazing and just completely sucks you into its grasp.
The brilliance of the show lies in the way they laid the story out of the viewer. We were never given more than snapshots of certain time periods in the lives of the characters. There were flash backs and flash forwards and the way they revealed the different aspects of each character made you fall in love more and more each episode.
All of the characters had such intricate stories and had flaws that made them so real. You could find yourself identifying with all of the characters at one point in time. My heart stayed with Yoon Jae from beginning to end, even when I couldn't understand exactly what he saw in Si Won that had him so enamored. She was a really fun character to watch, but her clueless-ness bordered on pathological and she could be pretty selfish. Si Won's parents were just absolutely hilarious most of the time, though there were scenes where I thought the dad went too far in his anger and I wish they had scaled it back some.
I really did love Tae Woong too, and my heart broke for him when they revealed what happened to his past love and who she was to everyone in the group. I wanted so much for him to be happy, but I did not like that he went after Si Won. How he never realized his brother was in love with her blows my stinking mind. Maybe because we are the viewer and given different clues than he was, but it seemed plain to see from a mile away.
The rest of their group, Hak Chan, Yoo Jung, Sun Jae, Jun Hee were always a delight to watch and you will want so bad for all of their dreams to come true. Without spoiling too much, once you start watching it and you find out Jun Hee's secret, I was really really happy with how well the people who found out about it handled it. I worried I would end up hating some characters once they found out, but it was all really great.
All in all, this show is a must watch! I mean, seriously, if you haven't watched it yet for whatever reason, stop being stubborn and watch it! It will remind you so much of your teen years, even if you weren't a teen in the 90s. I grew up in the 90s in America, so a lot of the pop culture references flew straight over my head, but childhood is childhood and universally the teenage years tend to be the same. At least in obsessions, that is :p What teen girl hasn't been obsessed with some pretty boy in a band at some point in time? What teen didn't fall in love? What teen didn't fight with their parents or with their best friend or their boyfriend/girlfriend? This show is just so wholly satisfying and a nice walk down memory lane, even if it isn't your memories.
Side Note: There was A LOT of pop culture stuff I didn't get. I recommend having google handy while watching it, just to fully enjoy all of the quirky references. For example, so many of the characters told Hak Chan how much he looked like one of the group members from Sechs Kies. It didn't occur to me til over halfway through the show that he might actually be the guy from Sechs Kies, so I looked it up on here and he was! Others might not have been so dense about that, but it really did just go over my head :p
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First a brief introduction because the one here on MDL doesn't really sum up the show well enough:
Unexpected You is about driven career woman Cha Yoon-hee, who is newly married to the dashing Korean-born, American-bred doctor, Bang Gwi-nam. Because Gwi-nam was raised in the US he’s presented as prime husband material. He's willing to follow his wife's lead & capitulate to her every wish. Yoon-hee's pleased with herself for having landed such a "perfect" man, and best of all? NO worrisome in-laws to fuss and fight with since his adoptive parents are back in the States. Life’s sweet for our Yoon-hee. With a cute, somewhat neutered husband & no pesky children running afoot she can focus on her work AND rule her roost the way she sees fit. As fate would have it, however, Yoon-hee's blissful existence comes to a screeching halt when they unknowingly move in across the hall from Gwi-nam's biological parents.
Sounds like fun to me. So I used my one week Easter break to watch this drama. I jumped right in hoping for a hilarious, heartwarming family drama.
Let me now explain to you why these hopes were dashed.
What I Liked:
1) The fact that we had an established couple who were happy & affectionate toward each other for the entire drama. I haven’t seen that many dramas, but this is a first for me.
2) In the long run I didn't care for the character she played, but I do like lead actress Kim Nam Joo. Mature actresses tend to get a raw deal whether they're in Hollywood or Korea. However, KNJ proves that dramaland is better off with older artists whose life experience adds layers to their performances. I think in a better role, where she's not trying too hard to push an agenda & prove a point, she'd be great.
3) Lee Hee Joon as the witty, smart talking, smooth operator, Chun Jæ Yong. He turned into a lovesick fool toward the end, but for the majority of the show he was absolutely hilarious. I thought he was very well cast in this role. Just the way he spoke, his mannerisms, provided some really good comic relief.
4) The youngest Bang son & his family. My mom always tells me to look at a man's heart, not his face. Jung-bæ and his family are like a visual reference of this lesson. The guy isn't much to look at by any means & his wife is a complete ditz who a lesser man would have come to belittle & ridicule over time. But in Jung-bæ she couldn't have found a more devoted and loving husband.
5) This drama broke away from the usual clichés. Not completely, but for the most part. And whilst the story itself never quite took off for me, most secrets & lies were revealed within a 10 episode interval which was nice. I hate it when they drag things out until the very last minute before everything’s out in the open.
What I Disliked:
1) The script - it had a few great moments. I thought the overarching story of the lost boy who reunited with his real parents was pretty okay. But the individual stories of the Bang women were underwhelming & frustrating. There were a few twists & turns in the plot that made you go WTF? The script felt constructed, rather than fluid. As a result, characters, both old & new, appeared out of nowhere at the most inopportune times in the most inopportune of places & caused the story to go off on a tangent that was better left unexplored.
2) This drama had an agenda & it got very, very preachy - Now don't get me wrong, there's absolutely nothing wrong with the show's attempt to challenge gender stereotypes and the sexism Korean women face in their society. I'm all for female empowerment and bettering the status of women, but beating your audience over the head with all this stuff defeats its purpose. Every woman has her own definition of "empowerment" so a tad more subtlety would have engendered more of my support for the women’s situation. There was too much righteous grand standing. Characters literally preaching at each other -- and thus the audience -- about gender equality, what they should think & believe. Too much. It got very annoying. Furthermore, it's funny that this drama is about empowering women, and yet most of the conflict arose from pitting women against each other.
3) This drama was dripping wet in cheese & not the good kind - Those who know me here on MDL know that I'm a romance junkie. I love love. I do. I love when my heart is touched by a good love story, but please don't go overboard. I get that, in Gwi-nam, the writers wanted to present a man that’s more sensitive & supportive of his wife’s needs as opposed to the old-fashioned, insensitive, uncommunicative Korean man. But it was too much, especially for a couple who, though newly married, has been together for a while. Instead of making me sigh, I was gritting my teeth while skipping that sh**. All the grand romantic gestures came off very inauthentic and felt too much like wish-fulfillment rather than a realistic portrayal of love between two grown people who've long since left the playground.
4) The women - This drama was very popular in Korea & if I had to take a guess maybe it's because the drama was an outlet for frustrated Korean housewives who harbour grudges against their in-laws & husbands. For me, as an outsider who doesn't live the same reality, this show was somewhat burdensome to watch as it was a complete & utter whine fest.
That's also probably why I couldn’t identify with any of the women. At the start I liked Yoon-hee a great deal. She was put on this pedestal as the ultimate woman's woman, and at first she did project an aura of strength that I liked. I also sympathized with her struggles in a very sexist work environment. But as the series progressed she slowly took on a cloak of victimhood & wore it like a trophy, especially when it came to dealing with her in-laws.
I really have a problem with shows in which women wallow in victimhood. If Korean women want to be the only queen in their hen house, make a drama that encourages them to break with tradition & live on their own with their families. To me it's a better solution than pitting woman against woman the way this drama does, albeit unintentionally.
By the end of the show my perception of Yoon-hee was that she had turned into a shrill, selfish, entitled and conceited woman. Pretty much everything had to go her way ALL THE TIME. She bullied her husband with emotional & sexual blackmail. And ironically, instead of sympathizing with Yoon-hee, I ended up feeling like the mom-in-law was the real underdog.
The other women weren't any better. One, a self-centered, spoiled, bratty gold digger; another a clueless, childish virgin who was sooo hot & cold it's a wonder any guy was able to put up with her; the mother who was filled with covetousness and resentment toward her husband and children; the older daughter who cast herself in the shadow of a man even though she says she wants to be an independent woman. They were all very human characters, but given that I encounter these people every day in real life, I'd rather not spend time with them in my entertainment too.
5) Last but not least Bang Gwi-nam, the female lead's husband - At first I liked him, but he seemed to lose his manhood as the show went on. He’s incapable of standing up to Yoon-hee, even when she’s out of line. To me Gwi-nam was not an ideal partner. Sure, he's a gentleman, but he was also a complete wuss. I fear most men in real life will never be able to live up to his lofty ideal, not for long anyway. So I'm not sure planting such unrealistic expectations in women's minds is a good idea. Moreover, guys like Gwi-nam end up like the desperate housewives who capitulate and sacrifice too much until the day they cheat, walk out or both.
This is a drama for women, but not a woman like me. That said, I wouldn't encourage people NOT to watch this because there’s a chance this drama was made for a woman just like you.
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Culpada: A Mulher que fez um Pacto com o Diabo
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While glancing through the other reviews, I noticed that this drama didn't get a lot of good reviews. I thought it was really good. I watched it in two days. It is light and deep at the same time. Although I figured out the family dynamics pretty early on, I still enjoyed watching how it played out. If I have one complaint, then it is not seeing enough romantic time between Panda and Hedgehog. I can't post spoilers, but I could have watched an episode 17 with a celebration and some added romance. The ending seemed rushed, but it was good. I enjoyed all of the actors in this drama. I had no idea that Donghae could act, but he did great. My favorite character is Oh Yi Na as Won Yi. I will be looking for more dramas with that actress.
The music was good.
I will probably rewatch this.
If you enjoy light romance with very little angst, then you would enjoy this drama
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for the one they didn't see so these is my recomandation pleas watch it it really entertaiming
all the actresses and producers made a wonderful job so thank's to all of them
thank you for all the peoples who mades such a wonderfuls dramas thank you a lot
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The acting in this drama is really quite good. Hye Kyo does an amazing job portraying the blind Oh Young, as I can imagine it would be very hard to act blind. Jo In Sung is also a very convincing actor, all his expressions are real and genuine, and that's what I love in a drama. Kim Bum and Eunji have amazing chemistry and are very good actors! All in all, the actors themselves are very convincing and emotional.
The only reason I gave this drama a seven for rewatch value is because I don't often watch dramas for a second or third time once I know what happens, especially in a melodrama like this. I might go back and pick up things I missed the first time, which isn't much, but I don't think I'll be watching it again.
Overall, I really like this drama. It's kept me entertained and on the edge of my seat the whole time. It has an intriguing plot line and I can't wait for the last episode!
I hope you found my review helpful, this was the first time I've written one :)
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Cast: is amazing! I'm a huge fan of Yoo Inna and she and Ji Hyun woo look fabulous together.
Music: It's enchanting! I could listen to evey single song on repeat for months and not get tired of anyone of them.
Rewatch Value: YES YES YES 10 10 10!!! I will watch this drama so many times before the years over. As soon as this drama ended I wanted to start right back over! It's so good. If I was in prison and they just so happened to have a TV set up in jail.. I would have no problem being in jail. Yeah probably the strangest way of putting it but seriously. REWATCH REWATCH REWATCH!!! :D
Overall: Usually I start dramas and 15 minutes into it I'll decide if I'll finish. This one I started and I was thrilled at the very biggining. I used to dislike historical dramas because I wasn't very familiar with Korean History. This one had me thrilled. I was up all night studying The Joseon Dynasty. By the end of the fourth episode I knew this would be on my Top drama list. By the end of the eighth episode I knew it was my absolute favourite, and it still is. All dramas make you feel different things. Such as: Laughing your head off, Jumping up and down out of excitement (usually because the main couple is being cute), Crying your heart out, And then you have those moments where you don't know what to think because it's an epic battle seen. This drama had the perfect amount of everything. Every moment in this drama was one or the other. No boring parts what so ever. I have absolutely nothing bad or negative to say about this drama. It's made of awesome.
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Re watch Value's high because I really like the Comedy-more, Romance-medium genre.
Overall, the story's not so high notched but its definitely not the end of the world if you watch it ;)
P.S - Wanna have a laugh, go watch it, lighten your heart. It'll make you smile! :)
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This is the kind of drama that becomes informative. It's the production side of the drama industry. I've learned a lot here and at the same time enjoyed the drama. It's a laughtrip kind and it promises to keep you out of boredom.
But halfway watching, I got that feeling of tiredness on the characters' side, where there are always these twists that aren't really fun and could really get tiring. But anyways..
There's Siwon to lighten up my mood. Being his biased fan, it was him who made me watch it. His last fluffy drama, where he played as an actor too, was a good one. Now it's an actor role again, only a really dumb but competitive one.
The main pairing is really fun to watch. The side story of Hyunmin and Minah being the stubborn actors fills in the comedy part. THE SOUNDTRACKS ARE DAEBAK TOO!! ?
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I never would've thought that I could like a drama about people in their 40's but after watching this I can (without a doubt) say that I was SO VERY WRONG. This is realy one of the best dramas I've ever seen. From hilarious scenes to heart breaking ones - everything was outstanding.
The story about four 41-years-old men might seem boring and etc. but it's not even similiar to what you might think at first. For people to stay such a good friends for more than 20 years seems impossible but these men take friendship to the whole new level. From playing starcraft together (LOL) to leaving everything because something happened to one of the four seems so amazing. And even from the screens they make you wish to have friends like that because it feels like with them you don't need anything else.
The females of this drama are also very strong so it's even more amazing. And there aren't any anoying ones (well, at least for me there weren't) that everyone hates. They are ALL fantastic characters.
This was the first drama I've seen that had prologues at the beggining of the every episode,too. They are so amazing to watch. You just laugh and you can't stop laughing. It's one big LOL. xDD
Oh, right there were also guests like SooYoung and YongHwa. ^. ^
So, the last thing I want to say is that this is REALY amazing drama and you should definitely watch it. It's realy good if you want to laugh and laugh, and laugh again ;) ;D
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Shut Up: A Banda de Garotos Bonitos
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I'm not even sure what genre is this. But this is something fantastic. I watched this out of nowhere. But starting from episode 1 I got really hooked to it. I am also happy I discovered Lee Hyunjae, he's so gorgeous.
BETTER DOWNLOAD JAYWALKING & WAKE UP! Really their music.
This is an appreciation drama to the boys you don't like in school. The back-sitters, the i'm-glad-they're-absent group. The bad boys. But if they're as good looking as these men, I wouldn't mind.
Maybe I get to watch it because I know one cast, Myungsoo from Infinite. Then I get to know them all. The cast is fantastic. They have their own viewpoints and personalities. Very addicting.
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This is my favorite of all time (and ofc, a guilty pleasure). My Girl is a fluffy, comedy type. I've known this on a replay on Animax and fell inlove with it. The cutesy is addicting.
The soundtrack, especially the Never Say Goodbye, never gets old on my playlist! Everyone download it. Ppaliiiiiiii.
Back on the plot, it's depressing to get attached to the unsaid feelings of the two main characters. The situation was (SPOILER ALERT), Gongchan can't give up his feelings to Yoorin who agreed to pretend as his cousin. That's the plot twist and the heartache. Gah.
After all, the ending's good. Just as how I want it to end. ?
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I've rated the cast, music and rewatch value by 10 and I am not sorry. This is the kind of melodrama that is something new. Every character are different, and their motives are clear and valid. They're all strong. That's what I love about this drama the most.
THE MUSIC IS FANTASTIC btw.
The cinematography's daebak. Their scripts are well-written (or sometimes I wonder, well-translated too?). I have to give the story a 7 because I can get really sick of melodramas (but not for this drama). The plot, if you examine, is not really unique. The characters are just well-developed and consistent 'till the end. I love the arrangements of scenes. There are on-cut scenes on this episode which would soon be continued and explained on the next. Just wonderful.
If I am to list down my favorite scenes, I may get a limit writing down here.
But of course it has to have flaws, if you want me talking in a critic's perspectives. I wish I could spoil lol. But really. this became my favorite, and I finished everything in 7 days. I hope I didn't sleep.
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The actors are great, I specially loved Freddie the assistant. The music was ok. The romance was there but it just did not sizzle for me.
This is one of those dramas that when you do not have anything better to see you can watch.
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