I am not going to lie, I felt extremely frustrated while watching this drama. It had amazing potential, but close to nothing worked out. The beauty - amazing cinematography and styling of our main character, and the beast - the writing.

There honestly is not much to say about the characters, since the only one that had true depth was Man Wol. She was the centre of the drama and IU did an amazing job representing her development and gradual change. Chang Sung could have worked way better if it wasn't for Chung Myung. All the rest of the characters we simply did not spend enough time with, to truly care about. I must say, Sanchez was my favorite and he was the breath of fresh air.

Kim Seon Bi/Choi Seo Hee/Ji Hyun Joong aka when writers do not care.
Out of all their stories, only Seo Hee's had some depth to it. Kim Seon Bin's story was extremely random, there were close to no hints about his previous life so I did not even care to speculate what happened to him. Hyun Joong's past life story had the least sense. How did his sister not recognize that the guy taking care of her was not her brother. How did his family not ask any questions, why did they recognize her and not him? You could say it was a war so they did not see him for a long time, but the same would apply to the sister. Hong sisters did not care enough about those characters to spend time to truly explain and develop their stories. They had the material for a good 8 episodes of Man Wol's side and had to fill the rest with random storylines. I could not feel emotional about them all leaving at the end, because all I could think about was: None of it makes any sense.

I also believe it would be better to start sending away the characters around episode 10-12, and not just have them all gone in the last 2 episodes. We could slowly see how Man Wol is realizing all the people she loves and cares about are gone and moving on to the afterlife. How the ones that stay behind struggle with the loss. We would see her being more concerned about how will Chan Sung deal in the future when she is gone. Them gradually leaving would have more impact on both the characters and the storyline.

Chan Sung/Chung Myung aka the failed romance
While I enjoyed Chan Sung at the beginning, the moment we got more scenes with Chung Myung and the past story developed into something interesting, I could not focus on the present. Chan Sung was simply a boring character that was there only for Man Wol's story to develop and he had nothing going on for himself. When we met another male character that had a past romantic relationship with Man Wol, but also was its own character, it was easy to forget our male lead. At the end of the day I wished for more flashbacks and less present plot. And I would rather have them as friends than as romantic partners.

Kim Yoo Na aka no one truly cares about anything
While I enjoyed Yoo Na, I do believe they should have made her a more tragic character. Yet again, there was no depth to the story. Show me how much she struggles to fit in that new house, how she misses her old friends and family and how she is tired of pretending to be someone else.

All the hotel cases aka when you try too hard to please the viewers
I did not truly like any of the random hotel cases, but I hated some more than others. The most random one with the humans having sex in the hotel room to have some superior child in the future. I was truly confused why this plotline was in the drama.
There were too many cases, so at the end, none of them was developed or complex. They tried to fit any genre (horror, crime, romance, melo, etc.) into the drama, just to make sure all viewers can find something they may like.

Disney ending aka when you are afraid to commit to the tragedy
None of the characters involved in the drama had a truly tragic ending. Which was extremely unrealistic. It could be easily fixed. Make Yoona too late to say goodbye to Hyun Joong. After Seo Hee goes to the bridge, cut to the mother registering the baby with the father's surname because of the grandparents. Make the book about Seon Bi flop. I would even like for Chung Myung to vanish because he used all his energy looking after Man Wol. The Song sisters wanted to show us how sad, tragic, and emotional the feeling of loss is, but they did not want to show the truly ugly side of it. Because of that, the ending felt bland.

Overall, during the whole watch, there was literally (and I truly mean it) only one time when I thought "wow, this is a good writing, I finally feel the playoff" and it was with how they used the Coffee Writer Dude. They spent just enough time for us to be curious about him and wonder what will happen to him, when he will go to the afterlife.

At the end, Hong Sisters had an amazing idea, about an amazing character, and no idea what to do with the rest. Trying to fit too many stories of too many characters made this drama a... mess.

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Mild angst, major miscommunication.

Can I even call it miscommunication? Was it not just a reverse delulu - Shirasaki Yuki truly lived in his unfounded convictions and denied any possibility of mutual feelings between him and Hayama Asami. The only thing left for me to do was keep watching and keep sighing - little guy was chickenblocking himself.

Truth to be told, I actually loved the plot itself. I'd just tweak how Shirasaki Yuki was written to make him a bit less frustrating. His character effectively lowered my rating with each action he made. Dude kept acting as if he was rejected without being rejected. At some point his explanation of Hayama’s actions became so illogical all I could do was laugh. What the drama failed at was convincing me there was a valid reason for him not even thinking there is a chance Hayama might like him.

I do appreciate how it led to a nice pinning and angst from Hayama Asami tho, which was in fact the highlight of the show for me. With just two episodes focusing on his point of view, I somehow believe I understand his character and reasoning far better than Shirasaki’s. His hesitation made sense. How cautious and at times passive his behavior towards Shirasaki was - it was well explained and it was the most fun part of the drama to watch. I’m a connoisseur of mild angst and I was quite pleased with what I’ve got from 25 Ji, Akasaka de.

How about the chemistry ( which is undeniably important in romance driven shows)? Depends on which scene we are talking about. The first kiss the part shared was atrocious. It was not even a dead fish kiss. It was not a cute peck, they literally just put the lips together, barely touching, and stood there. The context of this scene made it even more ridiculous and I almost dropped the show when it happened. Luckily it only gets better from that point, so don’t give up hope (not that it could get any worse).

For the acting - it was good, just not my preferred style. I did not quite connect with Shirasaki Yuki’s character and Niihara Taisuke’s acting did not help either. I would not even say Komagine Kiita did an outstanding job either, but I just prefer the subtle ways emotions are shown, and that’s how the character was written and the performance directed.

Production wise I did like the drama a lot. Not only they wanted to present a cohesive story, but they wanted to do it in a visually pleasing way, that’s always a plus in my book.

Overall, it’s a nice show, but it’s not something I’m going to talk about and recommend after some time. I enjoyed it as it aired, and will have no issues quickly moving on to other new titles.

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Uncanny in all the best ways. Painful in the most beautiful ways.

Not gonna lie - the whole show made me feel extremely uncomfortable more than once. Escapism in the purest and scariest form. Heaven never sounded more like hell. The truth is, happiness only exists in contrast to sadness. You can only cherish what will eventually cease to exist.

Sci-fi is a genre that’s extremely hard to ace. You either don’t get enough information to understand it and get immersed in the created world, or the creators overexplain everything, and it seems like a wikipedia page. Yonder managed to keep the balance from start till the end. They gave enough exposition through dialogues to make sense of the sci-fi elements, but they also used a lot of visuals and simple storytelling to explain and expand the rest.

The core of the show though is its philosophical theme centering around happiness, grief and meaning of existence. My brain hurts after watching it. It invites you to dwell on so many complex issues that are hard to grasp just by watching - it made me want to think about them more, even after the episodes ended. What is happiness? How can we achieve it? What gives life meaning? How to deal with grief? Can one get prepared for death? Not to mention the whole ethical side of exploiting people’s pain dressed up as compassion and the selfish and egocentric side of humans.

On the storytelling side - they did an amazing job with pacing. Each scene was meaningful, nothing was dragged, almost nothing felt rushed (on that “almost” under spoiler comment below). The show just flows so well. I would say, it seems better as a binge watch, treating it like a long movie. The breaks between episodes might slightly take one out of the immersion. I honestly regret starting it right when it aired, instead of watching it all when it finished.

Performances - from phenomenal to not memorable. That said, some characters were not exactly written with much depth, and only served a purpose of pushing the plot forward (mostly Hacker Park and the doctor working with them).

Shin Ha Kyun… This man. How is this even possible for him to keep surprising me with his skill? Where’s the limit to his talent? No words to describe his delivery of the character.

The choice of the songs perfectly elevated all the scenes. Did I cry? Yes, many times.

Production value was top notch. Yonder is like a beautiful art piece. Loved everything - the angles, the lighting and use of colors, the proper use of close up and slow motion, the camera rotation that were never overused. The subtle and well designed special effects.

There was one element of the conclusion/reveal by the end that I did not exactly like. It was well written and integrated to the story - it was just my personal preference for the show not to include it. I like when the shows that create an existential crisis in me keep things more open and vague - left to my own personal interpretation. But what I’ve got was a more solid answer to one question, that somehow felt like a contradiction.

Overall, I truly loved it. It’s for sure a show that needs to be analyzed and watched with brain on. Not because it’s so complex plot wise, or hard to understand. Rather, because it tackles many serious issues and questions that are worth asking yourself, and finding out what is your answer.

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Not a show you regret watching, but…

You can also just watch a compilation of the best scenes on youtube and get a similar experience. Honestly speaking, I watched it for the enjoyment of flirting between Juns, and not the actual plot.

That’s honestly what the show has to offer - really enjoyable moments with great chemistry. It’s such an unrealistic fanfic scenario with unrealistic casting, but you can still enjoy it, because Choi Jun just delivers with each and every pick up line and obvious flirting.

I don’t really have much to say about the plot, because it does not really exist. Rookie interns doing their rookie work unrealistically well, while one of them gets into a situationship with the team leader. Nothing makes sense, but no one watches it with their brain sharp and focused.

The acting was decent. During the romance scenes the cast did great, some more daily life moments felt awkward.

Overall, I really liked the first two episodes, but later I just needed more than just great chemistry during some scenes to truly keep my interest.

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Everything stays in the family… kind of.

I’m not gonna sit here and pretend like both romances in the drama were not questionable, they were. I also have to give props to the director and writer for doing their best to deal with potential issues a story like that could present. Age gap, family relations, grooming, predatory behavior, lack of informed consent - all that could have been an issue, but somehow they managed to avoid shooting themselves in the foot - for most parts.

What we’ve got, rather than just a romance, was a found family trope drama. The bond between Wei Qiao and Wei Zhi Yuan was deep and meaningful, slowly transforming into a partnership. They knew each other's shortcomings, they understood each other’s pain, they found home in each other’s presence.

Whenever the drama did a good job transforming the brotherly bond into a romantic one is a matter of opinion, personally I was quite fine with it. Being an overanalyzer, I appreciate how the show made me reflect on their relationship, examine how much of the connection was form on shared trauma and how much was driven by pure love. I’m glad the writer, with how the plot and characters were written, kept reassuring me that what they had was more than just codependency. Do I think both of them should go to therapy? Of course, but they are not the first, nor the last BL couple to never truly address or deal with the trauma.

We witness a story of two people who were abandoned and who found peace and happiness with each other. They had to face a lot of setbacks, both external and internal, to finally admit to each other feelings and allow themselves to be loved and love the other. The journey was not easy, but with love stories like that, it shouldn’t be. For me to enjoy this type of romance I need to understand it first, I need to feel like the characters also understand their own feelings. That they thought about it, talked about it, that there is no misunderstanding. And Unknown managed to do just that.

What made it possible were obviously the performances. Chris Chiu made the confusion and the strong internal denial Wei Qian was facing so real and raw. The way we could see on his face what he wanted, and how it went against what he actually did. The constant regret and fear of the situation and the feelings he could not quite understand and accept. Then we have Kurt Huang as Wei Zhi Yuan - from a chaotic teen, to resigned young adult, to confident adult. We witnessed his growth, we saw his dedication and unwavering feelings. And it all seemed so real on the screen.

All that said, there was one aspect of the show I just simply could not comprehend. One directing and editing choice that ruined quite an important scene for me. And I just cannot understand who thought this was a good idea and how no one questioned that choice on all the steps of the production.

Overall, it was less about finding a lover, and more about finding home. A partner that can understand and support you. One that you can rely on. One that always has your back. A partnership. Sharing the burden, sharing the happiness. A drama about finding a family and then working hard to keep it, in whatever form it might be.

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It's hard to explain why this drama has a special place in my heart without giving any spoilers, but I will try my best to convey all my thoughts without giving any unnecessary details.

The first few episodes bombarded me with many plot twists and "shocking revelations" to the point, I started to call the show "soft makjang". So many things happened, I was left in a state of confusion, but it made the show that much better, since the main focus of the drama is the aftermath and the process of healing and re-connecting with the family. We were getting to know the facts with the characters, learning bits and pieces, which helped me empathize with them more. I could understand why they struggled with the new situation, since I myself was confused about what was truly happening.

It touches on subjects such as LGBT, rape (did not happen during the show, but one of the characters was a victim of it, and it played a part in their story), ending a relationship when both sides do not agree on when and how to part ways, misunderstanding based on differences of characters and how you show you care for people.

Through the 3 siblings, we can observe different struggles people face in life. The oldest, Eun Joo and how she always tried to be strong, level headed and control her emotions. The middle sibling Eun Hee, trying to keep the family together and pacify all the sides in times of conflicts, acting as if she is carefree. The youngest Ji Woo, who tries to find himself, learn how to be independent, as he watches his family fight with each other.

I just truly cared for these characters, so when the drama ended, I already missed them. Did I cry? Yes. Not to mention, it has some of the best, natural and well paced romance I watched this year and the best "not a confession" confession scene (you'll know when you see it).

Did anything bother me? Not really. I was not that interested in the Sang Shik and Jin Sook story, and it was the weakest part for me personally, as I was annoyed with some choices both of them were making.

Overall, I have a feeling I might rewatch the show, or at least a few scenes this year. The good set of characters was for sure the core value of it.

Ps. Kim Ji Suk... damn, he fine.

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This show is the wake up call that begs us to be more skeptical.

This whole documentary just made me angry. The idea that some people can get so easily manipulated simply by the virtue of a person claiming they have holy guidance makes my blood boil. Rape, torture, murder, abuse, suicide - all because some random person claimed they are Jesus reincarnated. At the same time, it shows how clever these cult leaders were, how well planned their schemes were and how they selected the victims - they did not target everyone. That's why it's so important for us ask questions and rely on more than trust and belief.

I’m not going to lie, the level of religious freedom in Korea was always fascinating for me. On the first glance the idea of all the religions being able to rather peacefully coexist in one country, where no one is truly judged by their religious beliefs sounds like a utopia. With this level of acceptance and “no questions asked” comes a big danger though: the country becomes a breeding ground for cults. How many reincarnated Jesuses can there be in the small country of South Korea at the same time?

The documentary presents a rather uncomfortable question: what to do with victims who become perpetrators? How much can be forgiven based on the brainwashing they went through, and how much responsibility should they take for their actions? The leaders were evil, we can all agree. We wanted them to be punished and suffer as much as their victims did. What with the members? Logically speaking you know they are the victims, but it’s impossible not to feel any resentment towards them.

Some people may say it was unnecessarily detailed, unnecessarily graphic, unnecessarily descriptive, but I strongly disagree. Did this documentary make you feel uncomfortable? Angry? Sad? Scared? Good, then it did its job to present the reality of the victims. Saying it was unnecessarily detailed is like saying it was unnecessary realistic - they used real footage of the events, they used real photos, videos and recordings, they used real testimonies - it was not shown for a shock value, it was shown because it was the reality of what happened. The reality was just that shocking, awful and evil.

If I were to complain about one thing production wise - some footages were shown a few too many times, especially of JMS in the first 3 episodes. They kept showing the same videos of him preaching, and that I felt was a bit too much and truly unnecessary. Showing it once would be enough.

TW: I don’t know… feels like anything you can think of: rape, dead bodies, suicide, self harm, abuse, child neglect, child abuse… They show real photos and videos from crime scenes and recordings from victims, even the reenacted interviews are detailed and based on the real statements from real victims. It’s a lot.

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Loved the individuals, did not like the couples.

Am I the only one who was far more happy and entertained when I was watching the group moments and interaction between participants that were completely not romantically involved? Too many times I wanted to skip the dates and just watch them hang out in the house. I like them all as individuals, I like them all in the group setting, but I could not vibe with any of the couples at the end.

And I feel like this is why the show failed me - I had no pair to truly root for. I felt like none of the exes would work out, since they just danced around each other, but never truly try to solved their previous issues. The new couples were easily shaken by the past relationships, which made me think they would not last anyway, so what's the point?

I actually loved first few episodes, but the more romantically involved everyone became, the less I cared. That said, I still like the whole cast a lot, especially the best girl Da Hye. Wish her all the healing and happiness she needs.

Overall, I have barely any thoughts. I think I just truly don't care.

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“Even if you failed yesterday, even if you crumbled today, another tomorrow awaits us”

And we did crumble so many times watching this show - all the tears, all the frustration, all the healing after. This show is a long journey and even though at times exhausting, it’s so worth it.

What I really loved about Mental Coach Jegal was the complexity of the characters. The flaws were not just random setbacks - they all had a solid explanation and served as an amazing character development arc. I liked how the show kept reminding us that what we see is neither the beginning nor the end of their journey - they had their own struggles in the past, they have their own motivations for the future, and what we see is just the present self that keeps changing.

It’s like that for Je Gal Kil,Cha Ga Eul, Park Seung Ha, Lee Moo Gyul. There is more to these characters than we initially think. I honestly enjoyed the majority of them from the start, and even Goo Tae Man was impossible to hate.

That said, the character I found difficult to accept at first was Park Seung Ha. I honestly found her more unlikable than the bad guys themselves. It was too hard to ignore the lack of professionalism in her previous conduct in her professional life. The drama is magical though, and I started to appreciate her more and more as the story progressed, and her past actions, while not excused, were explained in a way that I could move on and see her for who she was - a flawed human being, like the rest of the characters.

I think that's the overall positive aspect of the drama - it's rich in different contexts and (both internal and external) factors that influence the characters, and the solution is not easy to find, since no one solution can solve all the problems.

Then we had the villains and antagonists - some better, some worse. I feel like the main villain was underwhelming in terms of the lack of depth. With all the characters being so complex, he just did not fit that picture. As if the last stroke of the brush in a masterpiece was done by a 5 year old child.

Then we have Oh Dal Sung - trash, the truest cockroach of kdramas. At some point I was not even frustrated or angry about his character, I was just tired. I wonder if there was any other way to deal with his story without hurting the overall quality of the plot and other characters’ arcs…

That said, for a show that is focused so much on the internal fights and struggles within the characters’ mentality and approach, the writers did quite a good job with presenting the villains that overall did match the plot and pacing. Although some were more of a plot device, not individual characters, I still found a certain value in the way they were written.

About writing - I don't think I've ever watched a drama where I really wanted to write the quotes down. I’m more of an “appreciating in the moment and moving forward” type of person, but here - the narrations and dialogues were so well written I just had to pause the scene many times and type down the words to share with others. They just hit all the right spots and were relatable on an indescribable level.

“𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘵𝘳𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯'𝘵. 𝘖𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘥𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵, 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘪𝘵'𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘶𝘱 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦.”

Big picture wise, Mental Coach Jegal addresses many important issues, both specific to the sport related environment, but also the things everyone can experience in their lives. I am amazed how they managed to make it all logical and have a significant impact on the plot and the characters. Without going into any details, the various traumas and issues the characters had to face, different ways they all dealt with them, whenever victims have any responsibility in what happened to them and how they should or should not handle the aftermath, the lack of support, inadequate support, shame, psychological issues - there are so many themes and topics it’s impossible to write them all down. And I honestly feel like the majority of them were dealt with proper respect and maturity from the writers.

To the acting. Jung Woo is a master of chemistry. He truly made a perfect team with each and every character. There was not one interaction he had that felt boring or flat. He could talk to a tree and I would find it the most entertaining thing ever. Him and Kwon Yool are a duo I will miss for weeks. The way he found a perfect balance between the comedy and seriousness, how Jegal was both eccentric and relatable. I am truly amazed.

I expected a phenomenal performance from Lee Yoo Mi and it is what I’ve got. I started the show because of her and I was not disappointed. She perfectly embodied the idea of someone being both vulnerable and strong.

All the rest of the cast did an incredible job. I cannot think of one performance or scene that was lacking in any aspect.

The production had a similar effect on me as the writing - I could not stop myself from screenshotting. I especially liked the use of the wide shots - they often looked like beautiful paintings.

All that said, the drama was not perfect, even if at times it felt like it is. Few things that could have been improved and can be seen as flaws.

First of all, Je Gal was introduced as a famous mental coach and writer. He was not a nobody, he was like a celebrity. But his fame was downplayed and non-existent after just a few episodes. I feel like him having rather high social status would be an issue for the plot to unfold the way it did, so that fact was just… ignored and removed from the equation.

Rather poorly done transition between the leading genres/plots. At first the show was more or less a sports slice of life with comedy. At some point it changed into a political drama with comedy, and that transition was not done smoothly. You can literally tell which episode is the turning point and it’s a clear cut deal. I did not mind where the plot went, it made sense. I was bothered with how it was executed.

Not utilizing enough “No gold medal” club. I feel like they either should have been even more in the background, or more prominent. They were neither the supporting characters, nor just a filler background - somewhere in the middle that I could not get attached enough to truly care about, but also not insignificant to just accept whatever happens to them. Since I loved each and every character in that group, I did wish we had seen more of them, especially in the middle part of the show.

Some questionable relationship developments I could do without. While they made sense character wise, I also felt like they were not truly needed plot wise. I could understand why they happened, but I also asked myself - did it have to happen?

To sum it up - it was not a perfect show, but for me it was close to perfection. By the end, I was so attached to the characters I honestly feared the day the show would end. I was not ready to say goodbyes.

I think a great show is not a perfect show, since these don’t exist, but one that makes you ignore/forget the flaws. They seem so insignificant compared to all the positive aspects, you just don’t mind them. Mental Coach Jegal did it for me. And I’m known for complaining about the most minor details ever. Mental Coach Jegal had some convenient solutions by the end, but I can’t bring myself to lower the rating, even if some aspects were not perfect in my book.

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“The crime would not have occurred if there was no demand for it.”

It’s not an easy watch. Even the reenactment of how the perpetrators usually trap their victims that was shown as the opening sequence just sets you on an anger trip. It’s impossible not the feel both the pain, frustration, fear and anger of these young girls who ended up in these situations.

Honestly speaking, I wanted to cry even before the intro with credits started. One of the most terrifying things about it was the number of perpetrators involved in it. We all know bad people exist, but we rarely truly understand how prevalent some actions are in society.

It also had a glimpse of hope? It was good to know there were people, even just university students, who risked a lot to expose and investigate these issues - otherwise it would be still buried and no one would know. It is reassuring to know that where there are bad people, there are also good ones. It was a rather detailed narration about the investigation process done by both the police and the journalists. The biggest heroes of the stories were the victims who stepped forward and helped the investigation to happen in the first place.

The commentary done while the credit rolled at the end was a perfect conclusion to the documentary. It’s not the victims’ fault. Anyone can become a victim. The way the society judges and blamed the victims makes it more probable for them to then do what perpetrators tell them to do, as they don’t feel like society will support them if they come forward and report the crime.

That said, one thing that bothered me was how they tried really hard to make it movie-like visually pleasing. At times it did not feel like I’m watching a documentary, but a drama. Just the style of filming the reenactment did not sit right with me. It was beautiful, but I honestly don’t think I should be getting distracted by the visual storytelling and pretty frames in a documentary about topics like that.

Another thing is the fact the documentary switches its focus from victims to the investigation process. I wish we got to see a bit more about the effects this horror hard on people involved and how strong and brave were the people who got through it and helped with the investigation.

On a personal note, exposing myself right now, but the topic is serious enough I think it’s worth it.

How big of a problem sexual exploitation and scams are in Korea? Me being a polish girl, got an email in Korean stating they have a video of me masturbating and if I won’t pay them, they will distribute it on the internet. Luckily, I knew a video like that cannot exist so I just ignored the email, but I know there would be many people who would fall for that scam.

Another personal story: one day before I started high school I was also threatened on the phone by a group of guys that they know where I live and they will have fun with me - it’s easy to understand what they meant. They told me which school I will start the next day. I assumed they were somehow related to a group of students that bullied me in middle school, but getting that phone call almost 2 years after the bullying happened was truly a terrifying experience. It ended on that one phone call and nothing happened - I was lucky. But being a victim of an incident like that myself, even though it was far less severe than anything described in the documentary, made it that much harder to watch it.

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I love Sang Ha, I do, but this was painfully mediocre.

My biggest problem was how Sang Ha's story and the romance were disconnected. They felt like two different shows. We had fun comedy and fluff between main leads, and punches and threats with debt collectors. Both put next to each other just didn't click well, since they almost always were presented separately.

The characters were also quite a mess. Sang Ha and Jin Woo had both half a brain cell that they must have shared. The bad guys told you they will ruin Jin Won's chance to win by throwing water at him? You tell Jin Won about it. It's that simple. It's not like his debt was a secret. They could have easily prevented it from happening, without Sang Ha going after first place (good for him tho). Why did he even cut contact with Jin Won after the marathon? His whole logic for winning and paying the debt was to protect Jin Won and be able to keep running with him (as he "passionately" screamed at his face in the last episode)... but then he just left? LoGiC.

Jin Won with the whole "go buy yourself proper new running shoes" when Sang Ha already told him he is running early mornings to deliver milk, because he ain't got money, but he needs to pay the debt. Something didn't click right in Jin Won's brain I guess. Not to mention that punch in the last episode. WHERE THE HECK IT CAME FROM? Not once they hinted that Jin Won might be a one to react aggressively with physical force. And here he is punching a kid in the face. This is called bad writing, ladies and gentlemen.

The debt storyline was truly the worst part that ruined the whole show for me. Why they couldn't keep it simple with a sweet romance is beyond me. The debt collectors went from punching the kid in the face, to crying when he finally paid it off, giving some bullshit, out of place, emotional reaction. Not to mention, apparently in Korea, when your parents die when you are in middle school, you don't go to an orphanage or foster family. You are left alone to deal with it... Go figure

It had some cute moments, I'm not gonna lie, but instead of watching the whole show, you could watch the highlights on youtube. Even the last scene had to be ruined by making them run in semi formal clothes ON A DATE. We get it, they are runners. Damn the writers... Why?

Get rid of the debt angst story, use the few minutes you gained to develop the relationship a bit more, and it would be easily 9/10 for me.

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When the characters regress and you are questioning reality.

After watching one episode one would think the female lead will get an amazing character development and slowly will learn how to prioritize her own needs. One could not predict she will infect male lead with her Jesus complex - and yet this is kind of what happens.

Not gonna lie, Takumi was adorable. The twist on the contract marriage and the initial presentation of him as a cold male lead was done perfectly and set my expectations for the rest of the show slightly too high. On the other hand, Yae was just frustrating. While at the beginning the situations she put others’ needs ahead of her own made at least some sense, later it was just too much to handle and the script was leaning into some ridiculous territories.

I think the writer just fails to deliver a character development. I know not all characters need one, but her behavior was truly pathological on a whole new level. If anyone needs character development, it’s her. What’s worse, I feel like her “giving up so others can be happy” persona started to influence male lead too, which led to at best questionable last episode.

That said, I did enjoy them as a couple and their scenes were adorable and blast. The actors had amazing chemistry and as a viewer it was clear to me how in love they are. I also really liked all the side characters - which, surprise surprise, actually got more character development than our leading lady…

Overall, a decent rom-com that is lacking in some major areas.

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The almighty pen.

From a writing perspective, it’s closer to a 7.5, but I had so much fun, I cannot rate it lower than 8.5. It was quite an exciting watch, delivering all types of frustration and thrills, but ending on a rather mediocre note.

Honestly speaking, the first half of the show was a good 10/10. It had everything one might want from a show like this - cute fighter, psycho brain, cinnamon roll who just wants to help. We’ve also got all the blood, pain, violence and the main character - the pen! I was eating it all up, could not stop watching and barely stopped myself from screaming at my laptop.

So what happened in the 2nd half? The drama changed from more plot/action driven to character driven… and it focused on the character I honestly cared the least about. With each and every scene I just started to hate him more and more. For all the buildup, all the tension, all the accumulated frustration in me, I was not delivered a proper closure. I understand it will have a second season, but even with that, rather than being excited and hopeful the drama left me fearful if they will deliver a more proper ending this time. I don’t want to dive into it and get a half baked potato with the last scene.

That said, the show presented a glorious friendship/bromance between Shi Eun and Soo Ho and I could not ask for more on that part. Both characters perfectly played off of each other's traits and the dynamic was just fun to watch. They were perfect partners in crime.

Oh Beom Seok was a complicated character and I don’t think the director quite well delivered what they planned with him. I feel like there was something missing with the way his character was developed. For such complex internal and external struggles, I was completely indifferent to whatever was happening to him - which is ridiculous as he is the center of last 4 episodes.

Plot wise, saying this drama lacks realism would be a massive understatement. Some scenes were so ridiculous and over the top I was just laughing. At times it was even hard to feel bad for these kids, because the situations they were in just made little sense. And this is one of the reasons I enjoyed the show. I watched it for the over the top scenarios. I wanted excitement and hype, and not pain and anxiety. That said - fear not, Weak Hero Class 1 still manages to create decent stakes and make you care for the characters, even if your brain sees the nonsense happening on the screen.

I appreciate how the drama tried to showcase what happens when someone is in a circle of violence. What they missed is to show why some characters were able to get out of it, while others got swallowed deeper and deeper.

Production value was good. Loved the fighting scenes, and loved the different approach the characters had to them. They delivered realistic blood and realistic amounts of it - someone gets punched, they will bleed, but ain’t no bloody waterfalls going on. Some scenes were quite aesthetically pleasing, though I wished they included more visual symbolism here. This is something I felt like the drama lacked.

The acting was the one that surprised me the most, on the positive note. I knew Park Ji Hoon is good and that's why I am even more amazed he delivered even more than I expected. This type of character so so easy to mess up. To create the aura of intimidation, you need some skills. to make him look empathic on top of that, is even harder. And Ji Hoon managed to do it all.

Choi Hyun Wook was honestly adorable. That said, I kind of felt like this is more violet, better at fighting version of the character he played in 2521.

Hong Kyung did a great job with the character he was given. Even if the writing for him felt rushed, he did great at portraying the change and desperation.

Overall, fun, violent and exciting. The characters were interesting, some more and some less likable. The conclusions for specific plots and situations could have been better. Perfect binge watch material.

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Chemistry that truly carries the whole show.

Honestly speaking, this is not a special drama in terms of the plot - the light enemies to frenemies to friends to lovers has been done many times, but it’s undeniable the execution here was amazing. Gemini and Fourth are truly the best new BL actors out there.

I have to say, both Tinn and Gun are perfectly written. Tinn has this amazingly goofy side of him that you cannot ignore, you just adore it. Gun is just a walking charm. It’s not all sweet though, and both the characters struggle with some internal issues, but are able to support each other in the best ways possible.

The relationship is simply wholesome. I loved how Tinn was focusing on Gun’s happiness and not just about his goal of dating him. I loved that they actually had a lot of nice conversations and tried to understand each other. I loved the mutual support. With the oversaturation in the BL industry with questionable and toxic stories, this level of understanding and mutual respect was simply refreshing to watch.

That’s for the main couple, what about the side ones? Sadly a bit of a failure. Either the chemistry was just not quite there, or the setup and progression was barely existing. Did I care about any of the side characters? Honestly - no.

Can we also just shortly talk about the mothers in this show? I could not be more happy with what we’ve got. Both Tinn’s and Gun’s mom are amazing in their own way. The drama perfectly showcases how good communication with your child is what builds trust and makes them want to confide in you for support, share their happiness and be honest about their struggles. Sometimes it’s important to take the initiative, but sometimes you have to give your child space and time and let them speak when they are ready, and not when you want to hear the answers.

Tinn's dad too, great person, I wish we got to see more of him.

The plot was great, but I also got a bit bored at some point. I still enjoyed all the adorable moments as I was watching, but I also had to motivate myself to start the episodes in the first place. This show was 90% fluff and 10% content (yes, this is an exaggeration, don’t sue me for it). And with that ratio it should be maybe 8 and not 12 episodes.

That said, there was one thing I will never complain about, no matter how many times it will happen even just as a filler fluff - good hugs. Hugs are underappreciated. Hugs are amazing. Proper hug on screen is at times better than kissing scenes. Melt into these arms and give us all butterflies! My School President definitely delivered in that area.

Fourth’s acting, his cheeky smile and warm gaze… Can we even ask for more? Yes we can, and we got it all - from the light and funny scenes, to more emotional and raw expressions, this boy delivered it all. Gemini also does great with acting. Surprised how well he does subtle comedy. For the rest of the cast - some did better, some did worse. We got the glorious “no tears just squeezing eyes hard” scene.

Production side of it was great. I am so happy to see the improvement in that aspect in the BL industry and the effort in making the show deliver a good storytelling both in writing and in the visual aspects.

Overall, the purest of the fluff. On screen chemistry that will make you jealous of not experiencing it yourself. Great main characters with fun personalities and relatable stories. But sadly also forgettable side characters and subplots there just to feel the screen time and overall repetitiveness of the story.

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Enjoying the angst that comes from misplaced revenge.

Call It Love was emotionally aesthetically pleasing. What I mean is, even the sadness, anger, frustration, regret - all were presented in a way that did not make me feel emotionally exhausted and tired. I was relating to and appreciating the sorrow.

What the show did an amazing job with was showing different sides of psychological issues - for some people it makes them completely detached from social interaction, for some it makes them forget about their needs, others would focus on the negative emotions as their driving force, some would be able to accommodate their lives around their issues. Depending on the character, their personality and past experiences, we saw all the different sides of how we as humans deal with difficult emotions.

About the cast - we got blessed with some well written and complex characters and well delivered portrayals of them. How the same people could be victims and perpetrators. How everyone had to learn from their mistakes and figure out how to set boundaries, but also respect the boundaries others set. How to understand yourself and be able to communicate with others. How to move on from past, how to move forward with the future, how to find happiness and peace.

Were all the characters well written, with many layers? Not quite. While Ahn Hee Yeon did a good job with her performance, Kang Min Young did not exactly have much to offer except from being yet another external factor the leads had to deal with. Similarly, Choi Sun Woo existed only in the context of leads’ issues and struggles, and presented no personal plotlines.

Cast wise, Kim Young Kwang ate the role. One of the most versatile actors we get in mainstream shows. Can do drama, action, comedy, romance, thriller - you name it and you will get it in one of his roles. In Call It Love he presented so many raw emotions from Han Dong Jin. Even though the character was not an open book, not the most expressive guy out there, it was still clear for the viewers what he was going through, what he was thinking and feeling.

At the same time, while for most scenes Lee Sung Kyung did great (it’s a role we have not seen her in yet), there were just a few moments where her delivery was too monotone and at times felt empty.

As for the production - I loved it, but I can see why someone else could hate it. The colors were not saturated enough and the whole show was presented in this pink/purple filter. For me, it perfectly fitted the overall mood of the drama, adding to the melancholic and stoic feeling. What also caught my attention was how the shots were centered vertically. In many the characters were presented in only 1/3rd of the screen. For me it seemed like the same way they were not centered in the frame, they were also not centered in their lives - still unsure about their place, a bit lost in their surroundings.

All that said, it’s a typical “you either vibe with it or not” drama. The same visual aspects I loved could look ugly and weird for others. The same characters I related to and enjoyed analyzing could be frustrating and unrealistic for others. The same dialogues I found touching, others could see as faking profoundness with no depth.

Why not a perfect 10 from me? I did not like some of the conclusions and I wished a few characters were developed better. For such a complex situation the drama presents, some aspects just lacked nuance.

Overall, I already miss this drama.

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