First Love for the Third Time (2022)

Premise is amazing, but that's where the good things end....

Honestly, i've been waiting to watch this TV series since they announced it. I was well aware that it will be once again short format story, just like all korean TV series which has LGBTQ romance. I was fine with it and expected some things to be lacking, but honestly, I was really disappointed.

The premise is literally amazing and so many things could have been done with the plot, but sadly, the goal was not accomplished. The first episode was amazingly done, with the character and background development, but than, with each new episode it went downhill.

The leads became childish and just not rational at all, and the dialogues were confusing - no it is not problem with translation, since I speak Korean. The only good character was our gumiho - Sin Bi.

The ending was underwhelming and just confusing - at least for me. I don't know about you, but if I heard something shocking about my partner I would like to know the story, but here, the leads somehow got together without any proper conversation or explanation.

Acting was underwhelming as well, I didn't know if they were crying or squinting their eyes, just...take acting classes please because going into cinematography and starring in LGBTQ series does not bring you overnight fame - you have to earn it with proper acting.

In terms of music I got nothing to say, it was so-so, nothing to remember.

Rewatch value? None, sadly.

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Enjoyable cute drama

The plot is pretty unique and has much potential
The actors were also pretty good , actually I didn’t have my expectations high because but they really impressed me
Their emotional scenes were really authentic and i had tears in my eyes while watching it
But I have to admit that there are certainly better Korean Bl dramas out there but nevertheless i really enjoyed this drama and I would recommend it to everyone who just wants to watch something without having to think about it that much and to just enjoy the cute moments.

All in all it‘s a nice show with much potential but unfortunately not really well executed.

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First Love, Again o amor que ultrapassa a eternidade

Ao encontra esse título e ler sua história achei promissor, pois de todos os BL que assisti nunca havia me deparado com essa temática. Portanto, comecei a história com expectativas altas e posso dizer que estou feliz de ter encontrado esse título, claro a história e a trama em si tem um erro ou outro o que considero normal, o sentimento que se tem ao terminar é de satisfação.
Dentro de toda a expectativa que tive o carisma e a atuação do elenco me deixou satisfeito é uma história simples mas que tem o seu charme, que é justamente a simplicidade de uma história doce, os atores mostraram muito talento ao ter um contato físico mais real do que em muitos BL, e a trama têm seus pontos altos e baixos, que poderia ter se resolvido com mais episódios. No entanto, me surpreendi com a duração dos episódios que tem uma média entre 20-28 minutos algo que marca um diferencial nas produções da temática na indústria coreana, definitivamente estamos mais perto de BL com maior duração e investimento e dessa forma, First Love, Again tem sua contribuição.

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Like how Korean BL's are trying to break out of the mold and are also trying different things

just like Thai BL's recently. Though I'm not much of a reincarnation story fan, esp when there's a gender swap but, I pretty much enjoyed this. I thought that the writers used this trope well esp how they handled JCY present life and past ones. The acting was pretty good imo especially Jin Gun he knew how to go for the emotional gauntlet. The chemistry was pretty good I thought. Some thought the ending was weak but I liked it enough. I think it fit the story at least the misunderstanding was cleared up and they were happy. I liked the cinematography too. Overall I give this series 8.5. It was an easy, nice, sweet watch with emotional moments when it needed to have them. Maybe not the best Korean BL out there but definitely a step in the right direction. I'll definitely give this a rewatch in the future when I'm in the mood.

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What a waste

Okay this drama had so much that I gave it a try and was disappointed.

This drama was so mediocre that it was so unimpressive, the acting the visual the story was just not right. Thank goodness it was only 6 episodes long, as I don't think I would have been able to sit through more than that?

Music and rewatch value: No.

Production: Bad. It looks like they filmed the whole show, every set of it, in a hotel apartment?! Like a really cheap one that students on their gap years with a budget would only go to. No set design worth a dime, no proper lighting. It's like a young filming student's class project that he filmed with his friends.

Overall: Don't waste your time watching this. You'll only get depressed at the wasted potential of what could've been. This could have been so good and it just wasn't. It barely functioned.
Better luck in your next life, soul!

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The story is something like this.
A writer who remembers his past life because of love that was impossible is trying to find the girl who he loved again in his 3rd life ( in which he is a writer). He finds out that the girl has been reincarnated as a guy and he becomes confused.
There is a nine-tailed fox here whose role as a supernatural is very limited when it had a huge scope, which disappointed me a lot. Similar to this there are multiple unnecessary / less focused things in the series.
The acting is pretty good, both leads played their role nicely but I think it would have been better if there was more zing, more spice in it, which speaks more about direction than ending.

Please ignore my Music rating.

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New storyline

This BL series gave us a promising plotline and the casting also catch the attention of the viewers. The story is interesting, A story of a couple that went through a lot of miseries in their past life, and they've met again in a new generation, but it's not the same as it used to be, and that's how the story began. The duration of each episode improves, unlike the other bl series that has only 8-12 min, which makes me expect that the duration will not affect the flow of the story. but I was wrong throughout the whole series I felt like things happens so fast. well for me their chemistry is not that strong but it's not weak also.
In their acting, while watching them the only thing I see is that "they are acting", well it's understandable because it is their first project, my thought is that sometimes they just act according to the script, sometimes the emotions are too much.
And one more thing, I think the scriptwriter like dramas, because there are too many dramas happening and suddenly they reconcile and that.

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Adorable & Fun Though Screenplay Has Weaknesses.

Adorable & Fun Though Screenplay Has Weaknesses.
Watch when you want something simple to digest yet interesting, with some really cute moments, and also some angst with emotional performances (that gets resolved). Don't take it too seriously and enjoy!

Six 20min episodes. FYI watch past the title page at the end of episodes; most of them have another short scene. For Ep 6 there's a small scene with a kiss right before the credits roll.
There's also an hour long special (Ep 7 on Viki) of the two lead actors watching the series, reacting, and talking.

The screenplay is more like a 6/10, however, my overall enjoyment makes it 7/10. It's just so cute & adorable and funny in spots! It's also an intriguing premise. It made me smile alot, tugged at my heartstrings and made me tear up despite the shortcomings in the screenplay (mostly due to time constraints), and left me with a warm feelings.

The acting is good, an 9/10 overall. There are micro-facial expressions and line delivery feels natural. Jin Gun is especially watchable and I'd give him a 10/10. He has good comedic timing, his facial expressions and reactions while his character is confused are so good, his crying is realistic, and he nailed the depressed hollow feeling in a later episode. I would watch this again at some point mainly for him.

The biggest weaknesses are with the arc of the relationships in the story and the timing constraints of such a short series. Character emotions evolve super quickly and the plot is very rushed. If you can shrug this off and go with the flow you might enjoy it for what it is, if you want something that's well fleshed-out this isn't it!

It's not high budget but the audio was clean and mostly consistent and the camera work, though fairly simple, was smooth. The music wasn't noticeable but didn't distract either.

There's some skinship and a couple light kisses that actually look sweet and like both characters are engaged (a couple steps above a dead-fish-kiss).

There's so much potential for more to be done with this premise, but I can recognize that time constraints curtailed this. While the writers could have decided to do a deeper exploration with only the first half of the plot, that might not have been a satisfying point to end at either. That makes it easier for me to forgive the screenplay's shortcomings and just enjoy what is there.

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The drama deserved more episodes!

This KDrama is not just about a sweet love story between two men, it is about so much more ! First of all, I would like to mention that despite its brevity, this drama is simply beautiful. But the core of the story is far too complex to do it justice with a short drama. In addition, the actors, in my opinion, do a really good job and the two main characters have a wonderful chemistry. The drama deserved more. The implementation is so well done, but 6 episodes are clearly too few, it really should have been extended to 12, or more, episodes.

This is the core of the story, as I mentioned above, which in my opinion is given far too little attention and because of which the drama could have been given many more episodes:


VERY BIG SPOILER
[Yeon Seok is immortal (300 y.o.) and has always loved only one woman: his first and only love Jeong Ha Yeon. He has been able to experience her reincarnation several times and has been waiting for the next one for a long time. Each time they were forbidden to be together or separated by a tragic event. He misses his great love so much and finally wants to spend a happy life with her. One day, he finally stands in front of "her". But Jeong Ha Yeon's soul has been reborn as a man, and his sister looks just like his former female body]
SPOILER

That's not the main plot of the story, so much more happens. Please watch the drama. I hope you can enjoy it, even though it seems like some of the plot is missing or squeezed.

That's why I can only rate this drama with a 9.0

Anyway, I love it

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Oh, this was wonderful. The story was so interesting, the idea of realizing that the woman you fell in love with twice in your past lives already was a man this time. In my opinion, Yeon Seok's "gay panic" was fantastically played and written - and also understandable. After all, in this life, his last life, he worked towards one goal: finding Ha Yeon and making sure he spent his life with her. So, to find out that SHE was actually a HE this time... Understandable panic.

Though I do admit that I wished that both Yeon Seok's & Ha Yeon's background was a little more fleshed out. Especially Ha Yeon's because his issues - especially the thing with his apparently rather controlling father - were only hinted at. I wished the last part was a bit longer, that the drama was 8 episodes instead of 6 and that we were given more about Ha Yeon.

And since we weren't, I couldn't help but side with Yeon Seok after the Big Reveal(TM). Because I didn't understand what was so terrible about his actions. And the fact that Ha Yeon ran and refused to listen to Yeon Seok and yet, he expected Yeon Seok to KEEP running after him and to KEEP trying to explain... That irked me. Because Ha Yeon accepted that no meant no, that Ha Yeon didn't want to be with him and didn't want to ever see him again. He accepted and respected it because he blamed himself for Ha Yeon's pain, so...

Overall, a really good and for its genre original story that deserved more time and space.

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Sweet but feels like it's missing something at the end.

The plot was nice and the actors did a very good job. Seeing them struggle with who they're in love with when it's a story of reincarnation was interesting. The crying scenes were very well done. I never doubted their sincerity.

Downsides: Yeon Seok being scared of bl at the start was a minor turn off at the beginning.

The ending was a little too vague. So Ha Yeon wasn't leaving? Then why did he have a suitcase and get asked if he forgot anything? What are the lasting effects of him remembering his past life? It caused tension in their relationship but then got brushed aside in order for a quick ending.

It's suggested that Ha Yeon has a lot on his shoulders but we never learn what any of it is.

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Who is it you love?

Do you really love the person as they are or is it just an image you have made of that person in your head?

What I liked:
* I loved the development of the author's character. He went from very much self-assured, narcissistic, and someone who is sure that his love story will finally come to the end he wished for three hundred years ago to a very much shocked, insecure person whose world has been turned upside down, and at last to someone who is starting to learn that there are always two people in a relationship with their own thoughts and feelings.
* The author's actor showed all of these emotions well, sometimes dramatically, and completely unashamed to be seen. I can hardly believe that this was Jin Gun's first drama.
* In contrast to the author, Ha Yeon knows what he wants very well and he is not afraid to go for it. This makes for an interesting dynamic.

What I did not like:
* I wish we would have got to see more of the second life. It was always flashbacks to the same scene. How long had they known each other then? How did they meet? What was their relationship like?

I think if we knew more about this time, the question the modern Ha Yeon asks -- Which Ha Yeon do you love? -- would have made more sense to more people in the audience.
I suppose that, in both of their lives, they did not have much time together in mundane situations (it was obviously a time of strife and struggle in their second life, and in the first they did not even get to speak as someone else than slave and lady), and that's why Yeon Seok had this image of "Ha Yeon" of someone who is not goofy, but rather refined -- who knows how the first two Ha Yeons really were?

Is it love if you only know the other person's facade that they show to the public?
It would have been nice if the show had more time to explore this question in greater depth.

Still, the story we get to see is cute, well acted, and we get to see some character development.
Recommended!

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