So here's what I'm watching this week! Of course the list is split by country and the amount of episodes I've seen so far are written below! There will be spoilers from now on so if you aren't caught to the episode number on list, you might want to go watch that episode and then come back! If you're interested in previous reviews, click here and if you want to see a list of my Favorite Asian OTPs and Ships, click here!
KDRAMA
Do You Like Brahms? (10/16): “Do You Like Brahms?” is a drama about students at a prestigious music school and the people in their lives. It will tell the stories of the students experiencing lessons, practicing, performing, and competitions since a very young age along with their parents and teachers who obsess over these processes. Park Joon Young, started playing piano when he was six years old. He won prominent competitions in the country before going on to win competitions across the world. Chae Song Ah, a college senior majoring in violin performance. After graduating previously as a business major, she entered the same university again to go to the music school after four attempts and is seven years older than her classmates.
I'm a little sad with how much this week made my blood boil. I really wish that all I could see in the 2 hours I watch every week is Song Ah and Joon Young being happy and adorable together but it really feels like every other person in this show wants to rain on my parade. How is it that other than our main two characters and Young In and sometimes Chairman Na, everyone else are such horrible people?? Let's not even get into the evil manager cause I will start screaming but seriously I was about to throw my laptop every time he appeared on screen. I did feel pity for Hyeon Ho last week after how mean Jung Kyung was to him but after this week I no longer feel that way. How dare he get pissed that after Jung Kyung left him for Joon Young that Joon Young wasn't interested in her anymore? How dare he say that Joon Young shouldn't have liked Jung Kyung as if feelings have an off switch. Who cares if Joon Young liked her if he never made a move or tried to get in the middle like other second male leads?? Min Seong also had a similar reaction to finding out that Song Ah like Dong Yoon back in the day but I have a feeling that she will forgive Song Ah quicker than Hyeon Ho will since her reason for being angry was more about Song Ah not telling her but if she doesn't, then both Song Ah and Joon Young deserve better. I was also right with guessing that Joon Young's teacher was bitterly jealous of Joon Young's success but it was truly horrifying to see how he emotionally abused Joon Young to the point where Joon Young almost tried to kill himself. I also feel terribly for how much Song Ah's getting bogged down with her insecurities but it's hard to say that she should just get over it. Despite all this, the strength of this show still lies in the moments when Joon Young and Song Ah are together. You can just see the weight of the world lift off of their shoulders but I can't help but feel like both need to be more confident and fight for what they want otherwise they'll just get trapped in depression.
Lonely Enough To Love (8/10): A story of young people residing at a co-living house. They do want to date, but they don't want to be serious. They prefer being free, but they also don't want to be lonely. Cha Kang Woo is a single man in his 30's and he works as a psychiatrist. He is full of curiosity about human beings. Even though he is an attractive man, he is afraid of having a romantic relationships due to trauma from his past. A woman appears in front of him and he begins to have feelings for her. Lee Na Eun is a freelancer copy editor. She is generous to good people, but she does not tolerate injustice. She hopes to become a novelist one day. Due to her situation, she has not had a boyfriend in 4 years. She begins to stay at the co-living house and develops romantic feelings.
God this show is the worst. I don't know if it's cause this is technically a web drama rather than a high budget drama but the writing is such a mess! I also can't just look away though cause I really love Kang Woo as a character and I want to see him happy so here I am slogging through this weird mishmash of writing choices and terrible female lead. I had high hopes for Na Eun early on but every time she makes a decision I'm left shaking my head. Their kiss was so lovely and I was so into how happy they were only for Na Eun to randomly decide that her pride was more important. I don't understand this on a multitude of levels cause first of all everything in this world has to do with connections so the fact that Kang Woo recommended her to someone he knew is a good thing! Secondly Kang Woo has seen Na Eun at worse rock bottoms than what she's going through now so to say that she doesn't want him to see her suffer when she loves him is so contradictory. It's also interesting cause I was totally impressed with how mature Kyung Won acted after Kang Woo rejected her but then we found out that she's the one who's leaving horrible comments on Na Eun's writing and that's just pathetic honestly. Another pathetic person is Hyun Jin who really needs to read the room and realize that Na Eun doesn't like him so unless he wants their friendship to end, he needs to not confess.
We're about halfway through this drama now and ever since I realized that this show is actually set in the past, I'm watching through my fear of when the time skip will happen. Part of me is confused cause the show doesn't exactly feel like it's setting up a time skip but the rest of me knows that it really won't take much. I've seen enough dramas with actors in the forefront that I know that at some point Hye Joon's relationship with Jung Ha will be outed and his popularity will fall and Jung Ha will break up with him in order to save his career or we'll see that time breaks them up in that Hye Joon will get so busy that he won't be able to give Jung Ha the attention she needs especially since the two seem to be going in opposite directions with their careers. Having said that the two were still so adorable and I kind of love the way they've become a safe haven for each other. I was complaining last week that Jung Ha didn't seem to get enough screen time but that has changed this week cause not only did we see more of her childhood hardships but we also spent more time with her in her everyday life. Just as Hye Joon is starting to take off as an actor, Jung Ha seems to be about ready to quit her job cause of her horrible coworker and her mom refuses to support her. Someone did film the coworker talking shit to Jung Ha so I do hope that she can use that in the future to clear her name cause I want that coworker to be fired rather than Jung Ha quitting. I still think Hye Joon's family gets too much screen time but the vindictive side of me was thrilled to see his brother fall for a scam though of course the father still refuses to see Hye Joon as anything good even now that he's starting to become a star.
FINISHED School Nurse Files (6/6): An Eun Young is a new nurse teacher at school. She has a special ability to see jelly like monsters that are made from residue of human desire and she can also eradicate these jellies. She uses a toy knife and a BB gun to take out the jellies. She senses that a mysterious event takes place at her school.Hong In Pyo is a Chinese language teacher at the same school. Hong In Pyo has a special energy. In order to protect the students, An Eun Young and Hong In Pyo work together to eradicate these jellies.
I really only have one overlying thought about this show and it's what the hell. I mean seriously what were the writers of this show high on?? This show is like a cutesy horror cult monster movie all put into one and I was all about it! In actuality I think the idea for this show was super unique in that it felt like we were seeing what happens when a magical girl grows up and is over her powers. I was confused for a large chunk of the plot but once I started viewing this show from that magical girl angle, I wasn't as bothered by it and by the end of the show I was able to piece together the important bits. Hong Jin Beom realized that by building a school on top of the cursed pond that he could gather strength from the jellies though the laughter of children (which sounds horrifying when it's put down like that) and so he formed Ilgwang Sterilization in order to collect the power. Safe Happiness was jealous of this power so they killed Jin Beom and now are fighting a war with Ilgwang Sterilization in order to take over the school. Eun Young was part of Safe Happiness but she left cause she didn't want to be like them anymore and became friends with the new head of Ilgwang Sterilization without knowing that her friend was using her. What I didn't understand though was how In Pyo fit into all this cause why did he have this mystical forcefield and was that the reason Safe Happiness couldn't go down into the basement even though Eun Young could? I did love the relationship between the two and I kind of adored how they had a group of kids that believed in them too. In the end it was hilarious that all it took was removing the Apji Stone and the school went back to normal. Do I wish that Eun Young and In Pyo became more of a couple even though we ended with them hinting towards it? Of course. Does that take away from the fun of this crazy show? Not even for a minute. I'd give this drama a 8.5 / 10.
CDRAMA
We're already halfway through this drama now which is totally crazy cause the release schedule really makes it feel like this show is flying back so quickly. I struggled a bit through this week cause I felt like this week highlighted everything I dislike in modern cdramas while also dialing back the cute from last week. Lu Jin is supposed to be like late 30s but he's written like he's in his 20s. The fact that we watched him move next door to Sheng Nan and then stalk her for a full day was ridiculous and not romantic at all. Why is it that of the two, Sheng Nan is the more mature one? The saddest part is that when the show dials back what it thinks is funny and focuses on the soft moments between the two it shines. My favorite moment this week happened when Lu Jin told Sheng Nan about his mom and how he grew up and related it to how food needs to tell a story rather than just simply following steps. I wonder if this is going to come back later with helping Sheng Nan win over Lu Jin's mom cause as of right now she thinks that Sheng Nan is just the young hot thing that caught Lu Jin's attention but maybe the sincerity in her cooking will show her that Sheng Nan is more than that. In other news Sheng Nan really needs to leave the hotel and open up her own restaurant cause the men who work in the kitchen with her are such assholes. Have they literally never tasted her food before to know that she actually has talent and isn't just seducing men??
FINISHED Maiden Holmes (32/32): After being defeated in a war against an invading kingdom, the Prince of Qi had his military power removed. His brother, the Prince of Yun decided to make use of the chance to support the ascension of the young Emperor. Prince Qi came to a tacit agreement with the Emperor and decided to retreat from courtly affairs. Meanwhile, he embarked on a search for the truth in secret under the alias of Pei Zhao. On his journey, he meets young detective Su Ci, the young master Xie Bei Ming, and poison master Dong Ru Shuang. As the four teams up to solve a series of mysteries, they also discover each other’s and their own secrets.
So the finale for this show aired this week and I'm low key going to miss it cause of how refreshing it felt in a pile of similar dramas. I absolutely adored our main leads cause Su Ci was extremely capable and knew when to place her logic and reason before her emotions while Qi was totally devoted to his girl but also knew not to confine her or hide her away in the name of protection. Every case was so much fun to watch and even our little group felt like a badass little crime solving family. I didn't expect to fall in love with Rushuang and Beiming as much as I did or even to ship them as hard as I did. I loved the way the show ended with the Bai Liang clan's name being cleared and Prince Yun being killed. Beiming was able to stay true to himself by exposing Yun's crimes while also staying filial by taking the killing blow for him. Fortunately Beiming was okay! I also really adored how the King and even the Queen Dowager were good people who loved one another cause the King was never persuaded by evil advisors to mistrust Qi as he knew that Qi was a loyal and loving person while the Queen the minute she started to realize that the things Su Ci was saying made sense wanted to know the full truth cause she loved the late King. It did suck that Qi's right hand man died cause I did want him to get a happily ever after with the Princess of the other kingdom but the man helped to his last moments by showing Qi that he was being targeted. Overall I really liked this show and I'd definitely give it a 8.5 / 10.
So the finale for this show aired this week and I'm low key going to miss it cause of how refreshing it felt in a pile of similar dramas. I absolutely adored our main leads cause Su Ci was extremely capable and knew when to place her logic and reason before her emotions while Qi was totally devoted to his girl but also knew not to confine her or hide her away in the name of protection. Every case was so much fun to watch and even our little group felt like a badass little crime solving family. I didn't expect to fall in love with Rushuang and Beiming as much as I did or even to ship them as hard as I did. I loved the way the show ended with the Bai Liang clan's name being cleared and Prince Yun being killed. Beiming was able to stay true to himself by exposing Yun's crimes while also staying filial by taking the killing blow for him. Fortunately Beiming was okay! I also really adored how the King and even the Queen Dowager were good people who loved one another cause the King was never persuaded by evil advisors to mistrust Qi as he knew that Qi was a loyal and loving person while the Queen the minute she started to realize that the things Su Ci was saying made sense wanted to know the full truth cause she loved the late King. It did suck that Qi's right hand man died cause I did want him to get a happily ever after with the Princess of the other kingdom but the man helped to his last moments by showing Qi that he was being targeted. Overall I really liked this show and I'd definitely give it a 8.5 / 10.
Ahh we were so close this week in putting the fake pregnancy to bed and now we're right back where we started!! At the very least I'm glad that Xiruo finally told Hongbin about the pregnancy being fake cause I was starting to feel really horribly for him. By Hongbin knowing the truth before they married, we were able to see him go through the stages of grief and then decide out of a sound mind to marry Xiruo anyway cause he loved her rather than because it was morally right or whatever. Of course he can't admit that to Xiruo so she's over here thinking that he's punishing her though I can't imagine that she cares all that much cause it's clear she loves him too and I was living for every single moment with them. Their wedding was stunning and I love how many kisses they've already shared for all that they're claiming that they don't love one another. As I called it last week I do think we're finally reaching the point where Qin will become a friend rather than an enemy and though I wanted Hongbin to use the whole falling into water as a reason to miscarry, part of me felt horrible for how horrible Qin felt at the thought that she might have killed a baby. The only real villain in this show is Ruer and it's curious that no one else notices yet. I don't know what her plan is either. So what if Xiruo lost the baby cause she's already married to Hongbin and I highly doubt the parents will just allow a divorce.
JDRAMA
Wow it's been a hot minute since I last watched an episode of this show and I'm not entirely sure if the show was on hiatus or if the subbers were but either way I'm thrilled it's back! During the last episode I was wondering what Nao's reason for being in this show was cause it felt like we already had enough people chasing after Ibuki but now I think that he's actually around to being Mei's boyfriend in the future. The fact that he's into all the things she's into like cooking and sewing as well as the fact that he's not as manly as other guys makes me feel like he would be perfect for her. It also helps that when she touched him, she wasn't scared off like she usually is. Ibuki and Asada were absolutely adorable this week too and I loved the way he can read her all the time. Their backhug was so cute and I was low key heartbroken that their kiss was interrupted but I also really adore the four of them being friends. We kind of already knew that Mei was kidnapped as a child and that's why she's so scared of men but I'm not sure why that was a reason for the whole school to turn on her. It's so random why all the girls hate Mei so much cause she was being so nice to them!
This week was the penultimate episode but I'm not entirely sure whether the plot moved forward at all or if we're still stagnating in the same place as before. All the big reveals happened last week and this week was more of the aftereffect of all those lies though I was glad that this episode existed to act as the bridge cause we needed a second to breathe! Nao revealed herself to be the real heir to Kogetsuan and Tsubaki really didn't seem to think much of it other than the fact that it made him think back and wonder if maybe he like Nao blocked part of his memory back then. It seems now that maybe the Congressman is his real father and not the guy that works in the kitchen but who even knows cause it's not like the matron isn't trying to seduce everyone. What is interesting is that cause Tsubaki saw his dad and Nao's mom kissing he didn't sleep that whole night so he was an alibi for his mom therefore the person who killed his dad was probs his birth father. Also interesting is the fact that Tsubaki is losing his eyesight and I have to admit that at the end of the episode I totally expected the grandfather to be like Tsubaki and Nao should get married therefore we can block the bad press of Tsubaki not really being the heir while also making sure the real heir takes over but instead we're doing another competition and I really don't know what that will accomplish cause the grandfather has been going on and on about how only blood matters and now randomly he's like actually I don't care that much? I really want someone to spill the beans to Tsubaki next week that Nao was pregnant and lost their baby cause he really deserves to suffer more for all of this.
TWDRAMA
Lost Romance (17/20): Zheng Xiao En works as an editor of romance novels at a publishing company, and secretly dreams about falling in love with a CEO. When she isn’t working, she spends her days daydreaming about He Tian Xing, the handsome chief executive of the company that occupies the building opposite her company’s offices. One day, Zheng Xiao En magically finds herself transported into the pages of a romance novel – and comes face-to-face with her crush He Tian Xing. However, she soon discovers that in this fictional universe, his name is Si Tu Ao Ran – and his personality is very different. She hopes to use all the tips and tricks she has learned from the romance novels she has edited to help snare his heart. But she soon discovers that in this fictional world, she isn’t the heroic female lead – and instead is an evil side character! Can she flip the story on its head – and end up with the man of her dreams?
Raise your hand if your heart was also breaking for poor Xiao'en this week cause mine definitely was. Don't get me wrong, I'll about the angst but at the same time seeing how excited Xiao'en gets every time she thinks a piece of Aoran will appear in Tianxing hurts. Tianxing has taken note that something's not right too and I'm not entirely sure why Xiao'en can't tell Tianxing the same story she told Aoran. All she has to say is that he reminds her of the man she loved but that he died or is gone and he would no longer be looking at her so suspiciously. Having said that I did love the conversation the two had in what was supposed to be an interview and I loved that he overheard Xiao'en telling Chun Tian about praying for him to get better cause she was too afraid at first to go to the police. I am thrilled though that Chuchu in real life has appeared too cause I'm ready to see my trio of girls reunite cause I have a feeling that Chuchu is going to be just as whiny as the Chuchu in the book so I'd love to see Susanna bond with Xiao'en and Chun Tian over how much they hate Chuchu all over again. In that same vein I kind of hope that something happens with Chun Tian and Jason cause Chun Tian is such a ride-or-die that I want good things for her too. We're even moving forward with giving Qingfeng a happy ending though I'm kinda sad that the author isn't played by the same actor that played Qingfeng cause I low key miss Qingfeng!
xoxo Allie
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