Reviews

Queen Woo: An Unexpected Masterpiece from Korea

First things first, I did not expect this level of brilliance coming from a Kdrama (no offense), but "Queen Woo" has completely exceeded my expectations. The series is amazing, with a perfect story and deeply thought-out characters. Each character has their own motivation for what they're doing, and they all have well-written backstories. Every decision made felt right, and every detail about the story was perfectly logical—something I truly appreciated.

The story showcases a strong queen, which is not what we typically expect from historical dramas. Usually, we see queens who stay in the palace and accept their fate like every other wife of the princes. However, "Queen Woo" shows that if we try our best, we can change our destiny. We shouldn’t stay within the borders someone else has set for us; maybe those borders are too small for us. Seeing such a strong woman was refreshing and exciting. Her presence alone kept me on the edge of my seat.

The king who passed away (played by Ji Chang-wook) was portrayed as a lovely man and a strong king, making him a logical choice for the crown. His character's background and motivations made perfect sense, highlighting why his father chose him. I enjoyed watching his performance immensely.

I must also mention how deeply I feel for the loss of Song Jae-rim, a strong actor who played the role of the first prince. His performance was moving and powerful. And last but not least, my favorite actor Lee Soo-hyuk—only God knows how much I adore his role here. His increased screen time and flawless acting skills brought the character to life perfectly.

The entire cast and crew were incredibly talented and skilled. I deeply appreciate the director, the makeup artists, and the special effects team—everything felt real and immersive. "Queen Woo" is a perfect masterpiece that deserves to stay on top and go viral. I hope to see more genres like this coming from Korea. They’re typically known for cheesy romances, but "Queen Woo" has shown me their true potential, and I am excited for what's to come.

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Maxnat é um grande ship, mas não é para todo mundo

Acredito que o BL recebeu críticas mais duras do que merecia, visto que não correspondeu a expectativas que nunca prometeu corresponder. A real é que Naughty Babe é melhor que Cutie Pie, mas nem todo mundo está pronto para essa conversa. Max e Nat possuem uma atuação incrível e uma evolução na série desde o primeiro episódio, alguns pontos poderiam melhorar, mas que dependia mais da história do que deles, pontos podiam ser mais abordados, melhor explorados, como o fato que Nat tem um diploma universitário sabe-se lá de que, visto que só sabemos da sua especialidade em arte marcial. Vi algumas pessoas reclamando que ele "tornou-se uma donzela quando foi atacado", primeiro que isso é um comentário extremamente misógino, segundo que você pode ser o melhor do mundo, mas contra 4 fica difícil, ainda mais considerando o porte e tamanho do Nat, no um a um se garantir é diferente com um grupo. Achei o plot do pai do aluno desnecessário, pois não acrescentou muito na trama, mas em particular ver a mudança do Hia Yi foi incrível, ele era muito frio e severo em Cutie Pie, ele foi realmente se tornando mais quente que uma churrasqueira como traduzimos para o BR, hahahaha, sendo amável e vendo que tava errado, inclusive, a trama toda é sobre como eles tem problemas e o Yi sabendo que está errado, mas talvez algumas pessoas não tenham entendido isso. Famílias com segredos e traumas são complexas, mas sinto que algumas coisas podiam só ter sido pesquisadas no google (a situação de desconfiarem de Yi estar traindo Diao) que isso resolveria bem mais fácil. Quem é novo no mundo dos BL não entende que eles possuem uma característica de ship clássico de Power Top e Power Baby, que logicamente na vida real seria muito ruim e questionável, mas no mundo dos BL é apenas um lugar clássico, quem não veio de uma cultura de yaoi acaba questionando coisas sem conhecer o meio que está inserido. Enfim, é um dos meus BLs de conforto, por isso vim fazer essa resenha em tom de defesa, pois vi algumas resenhas muito desrespeitosas com os atores e a produção como um todo e acho que: se esse tipo de ship não é para você, apenas veja outra coisa, não seja infeliz em suas palavras sobre pessoas reais. É possível criticar sem ofender.

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Entertaining Plot, Annoying Leads

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I decided to watch this because people seemed to really like it and it stars Woo Do Hwan (우도환). I want to like him, but I haven’t liked him in anything I’ve seen him in so far. Maybe this drama will be the one that changes my mind.

Acting/Cast: Many familiar faces in this drama. That was nice. I can say Woo Do Hwan’s acting was better in this drama, but unfortunately his character wasn’t likeable. The female lead started off alright, but she became increasingly annoying over the course of the drama. The second male lead was a decent character though. 4.5/10

Writing: I’m just not into the red flag male leads at this age. I want more green flags and healthy relationships. The constant fighting between the leads, the constant psychological abuse (the female lead is an orphan and, knowing this, the male lead repeatedly abandons her)…it was just…not cute at all. And after all the torment the male lead puts her through, she is the one that needs to repeatedly prove her love for him. By the end of the drama, I was thoroughly irritated by the whole thing and I was completely okay with the idea of the male lead dying. I wasn’t buying their chemistry as a couple. I actually thought her chemistry with the second male lead was better, although I couldn’t support their relationship either. There are also questionable things in this drama that was difficult for me to even want to watch…relationships with large age gaps…even grooming?? The humor is also very cringey to me. Instead of laughing, I’d be saying ‘wtf??’ or ‘ew…’ (for instance, the second male lead had a habit of exposing himself in public as an act of protest, as well as having scenes that insinuated that he might whip it out randomly and sexually assault someone.) The male lead’s character didn’t feel realistic. He would be a broody asshole one moment and then suddenly be super goofy and happy the next. The female lead’s character also didn’t feel authentic. After all the psychological abuse she’s endured, there’s no way she would be that cheerful. The message of the drama was lame as hell. There’s two storylines happening and both are all about the importance of bloodlines. By the end, the two leads and the second lead and his mom (all with their own issues regarding their own bloodlines) finally realize that blood isn’t what makes people family or makes people happy. Well yeah, no shit...welcome to the 21st century. So, nothing revolutionary here at all. The basic plot of the drama is actually entertaining – a guy kidnaps his ex from her wedding to have her go on a quest with him to find his biological dad before he dies, while getting chased by gangs and falling in love again – but this bloodline obsession stuff is just weak. This drama was fun when it wasn’t taking itself too seriously. 1.5/10

Direction/SFX/Music: I didn’t have much complaints in this area. It’s definitely a well-produced drama, which is a big reason why it held my attention despite all the issues I had with the writing. The music is ok, but there's something that bothers me about it. They used an American song called California Dreamin'...maybe that's why? It doesn't fit? 6/10

Entertainment Value: The plot is pretty exciting, especially for the first half. The characters weren’t likeable enough for me to really care about them by the end of the drama though. Their toxic behavior becomes repetitive and annoying. The overall message was too basic to have any lasting impact on me. The toxic relationships left me feeling weird about the whole thing (especially the grooming…wtf?). 4.5/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 4/10. This was tough to rate. It was entertaining, well-produced, and well-acted. But there were so many things in the writing that just didn’t work for me personally and I felt like it was a waste. I can’t recommend this drama, especially to those who have been in abusive relationships (I feel this drama normalizes psychological abuse in relationships and even romanticizes it). However, it is a quick watch (only 10 episodes) and easy to binge.

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Passez votre chemin.

Pourquoi sortir un tel drama ? Pourquoi perdre son temps devant 12 épisodes insignifiants ? Je ne vais pas faire de longs paragraphes pour dire que j’ai trouvé mon visionnage à chier, je vais simplement énumérer les quelques points qui l’ont rendu horrible.

Le casting

Honnêtement, j’ai juste eu l’impression que le drama faisait la publicité des idoles de la K-pop. D’accord, ça reste dans la ligne éditoriale du drama, mais dosez.

Le scénario

Rien de très palpitant : des problèmes au travail et des histoires d’amour qui s’y mêlent. DODO.

Atmosphère générale

Je pensais que le drama datait d’avant 2013, mais pas du tout. Il est sorti la même année que d’autres dramas incroyables, donc je reste dans l’incompréhension.

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A toddler in love with Atlas.

The Story
The series is another take on that classic nobody and somebody pairing plus a few jealous, money-hungry foils on the side. The nobody who has been through a lot and the somebody who has lived a sheltered life resulting in a stunted emotional development. A love quadrangle.

Execution
The comedy in this drama are of its time - Gen Z and Alpha may not appreciate unless they have a really good grasp of what was considered funny and cute in 2011. The visuals are also from that era when the Hallyu Wave was just peaking with worthwhile stories and passable acting before the public started to obsess with good looks resulting in the current compositions in kdramas.

Characters
The characters in this drama takes after the templates of the time:
- An ML with the emotional and intelligence quotient of a toddler - all the rage back then. There's something disgusting with a guy in his late 30's sulking and bratting around. It will really take the greatest type of love to tolerate his existence - that of a mother's.
- An FL who carried the earth in a quiet long suffering way - a really absorbent character to all the tantrum of the ML and the spite around her.
- The antagonist rival whose character will reappear played by the same actress in My Love from the Star
- The usual 2ML whose character and fate has not changed much until now.

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O início parece que o dorama será bem ruim, mas com o desenvolver da história você acaba se envolvendo e se apegando.
Eu li bastante as resenhas antes de iniciar porque a minha experiência anterior com um dorama tailandês não tinha sido boa, mas preciso discordar da maioria delas. Ao meu ver, a história começa ruim e não ao contrário, mas com o passar dos episódios você consegue ver a profundidade dos porquês, dos problemas e das expectativas dos protagonistas e personagens no geral.

Mas devo concordar que o perdão para tudo de ruim que a Soiphet foi muito fácil, ela deveria ter sido punida de alguma maneira, assim como a Tanya pelo vazamento dos dados dos usuários. E acho que depois de tanta dor que o Veekij passou com a tia, ele deveria ter sido um pouco mais firme, apesar dos laços familiares e da carência pela falta da mãe na infância.
Pode ser que ele perdoou tudo tão facilmente porque ele realmente agora tinha tudo que ele queria, a mãe desaparecida, descobriu os porquês e uma companheira que o ajudou em todos os momentos como a Mirin. Ou porque ele também percebeu como era a percepção dos outros perante ele, não só a família, mas a descrença dos funcionários e diretoria.
Enfim, eu achei que valeu a pena. Gostei muito da atriz Kao Supassara Thanachart, ela tinha uma intensidade no olhar e chorava com uma facilidade tremenda. O Dew Jirawat Sutivanisak atuou muito bem pensando que ele não poderia demonstrar tantas reações perante as situações pelo fato dele não enxergar as expressões nos rostos alheios.

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"Growth in tough times: How Minglan's wit won me over".

Okay so I dropped this one twice just because the female lead looked like a kid next to the male lead who gave middle-aged man vibes lol.

The start was kinda slow-paced but not boring at all, which made me come back and pick it up again - and I'm so glad I did! This one easily shot up to my top 3 fav dramas.

And I came to love these characters to death! The male lead, who I thought would be just some old man, turned out to be super charming and had great character development. The female lead is my absolute favorite - beautiful, mature, and so witty. I learned a lot from her character and how she tackled every challenge that came her way. I was taking mental notes every time she surprised me with her unique ways of handling difficulties ?

I was rooting for her so hard!

Loved how Gu Tingye and Granny were always there supporting her though - seriously, poor Minglan needed a break sometimes!

Was so happy when they finally got married! They bring out the best in each other. Total power couple! I miss their chemistry so bad.

Trust me, this series just keeps getting better and better with every episode.

Definitely worth a rewatch!

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A história realmente começa promissora com a nossa protagonista Miaomiao entrando no mundo do romance recém lançado de seu autor favorito, mas que ela havia detestado o final. Dentro do romance ela tenta mudar o final para conseguir voltar para sua realidade. Entre suas missões está conquistar o coração de Zi Qi, que odeia sua personagem no romance. O que rende boas cenas engraçadas nos primeiros episódios.

Porém, conforme vamos imergindo na história acabamos esquecendo que estamos no "romance" de Fu Zhou e todas as vezes que isso acontece Miaomiao e nós, expectadores, somos lembrados pelo "sistema" que ela está dentro de uma história de ficção. Mas, conforme isso vai acontecendo repetidas vezes, especialmente nos momentos finais, vai ficando chato. Uma história é contada e em seguida substituída por outra o que me deixou muitas vezes com a sensação de andar em círculos ou me sentir indiferente com o que acontecia, pois era provável que seria mudado muito em breve.

Sinceramente achei a história do livro muito mais interessante do que a história "real" do Fu Zhou e Miaomiao da "realidade". O final não foi satisfatório para mim porque não apresentou uma solução para o livro, pelo menos não foi apresentada a resolução para os expectadores.

Não gostei tanto quanto gostaria, mas o drama foi um grande sucesso, portanto, se não se sinta contrariado por uma opinião negativa e assista. Gostos e opiniões variam e talvez você venha gostar.

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A Heartwarming Journey: Encounter

This is series is really a heartwarming that beautifully captures the essence of love, second chances, and the power of connection. The lives of two individuals from vastly different worlds: Cha Soo-hyun, a wealthy and privileged heiress, and Kim Jin-hyuk, a free-spirited young man.

What truly sets Encounter apart is its ability to delve deep into the characters' emotions and motivations. The chemistry between the lead actors, Song Hye-kyo and Park Bo-gum, is undeniable. Their performances are both nuanced and captivating, drawing the audience into their world.

The drama's slow-burn romance is both endearing and refreshing. As the characters navigate their complex relationship, viewers are treated to a series of heartwarming and poignant moments. The show's ability to balance light-hearted humor with heartfelt drama is commendable.

One of the most striking aspects of Encounter is its exploration of societal expectations and personal fulfillment. The characters' journey towards self-discovery and happiness is both inspiring and relatable. The show's message of embracing life's uncertainties and pursuing one's dreams is a powerful one.

I loved the poetry and how it conveyed the love over the poetry and it really felt in my heart and seeing them overcome the struggle together really touched my heart and cried tbh the series my not be for everyone but those who love and relate the hardship can really love this type of story.

Overall, Encounter is a must-watch for fans of romantic dramas. Its beautiful storytelling, strong performances, and heartwarming message make it a truly unforgettable viewing experience.

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When You Only Watch for the Male Lead

Admittedly I gave this as high a rating as I did because of Li Jiu Lin. I love this guy. He is gorgeous. He has such an expressive face; he doesn't need a lot of talk for you to know what he thinks or feels - and that body! Wow!

Didn't care much for the FL, nor the SML, or the SFL. Their characters were weak and useless. Their story arcs were sloppy at best. The story itself was vague and going nowhere fast. It had potential, but the writers do what writers seem to do best these days, made a mockery of it. There wasn't even any real sizzle between the lead couple despite such a smoking hot ML.

Talk about not tying up loose ends? The SFL got away scot-free with her shenanigans. She even wrangled the ML into her bed, which made me sick to my stomach!

The direction of the writing and quality of Chinese dramas these days is falling fast. No matter how good looking, appealing, or even talented the actors are, they can only perform the roles they are given. I stick mostly with period dramas anymore because the modern-day ones are fraught with domestic violence and abusive relationships.

Is anyone paying attention to the rapidly falling standards of these dramas? Doesn't seem so.

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