What Dramas Did I Finish This Week?

Hello and welcome back! These are the dramas I finished this week. 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

 

FINISHED The Devil Judge (16/16): Set in a dystopian version of present-day Korea where daily life is chaos and society has collapsed to the point that people openly voice their distrust and hatred for their leaders. In this world bereft of law and order, Head Trial Judge Kang signals the need for change. His courtroom is the subject of a reality show where he mercilessly punishes the guilty, earning him the "Devil Judge" nickname. As a divisive figure with an aura of mystery that belies his true identity and ambitions, the public is unsure whether he is a true hero or someone, knowingly sowing the seeds of discontent in his courtroom. A bitter rivalry has taken shape between the "Devil Judge" and the highly ambitious Jung Sun Ah, who has risen from poverty to become a corporate social responsibility foundation director. Into this turbulent world enter two childhood friends on a quest for true justice: rookie Judge Kim Ga On and Police Officer Yoon Soo Hyun. Do they have what it takes to challenge both the scheming Jung Sun Ah and the notorious "Devil Judge"?

 
I've been on a bit of a streak lately where I start a drama really fascinated and excited only to end it feeling meh. Devil Judge was for sure one of these. I think my main problem with this show was the fact that it couldn't decide what it wanted to be. Like it was one-part a revenge story and one-part a commentary on the highs and lows of law and one-part post-apocalytptic. Like dude show pick a side. If it wanted to be a fantasy revenge story like Taxi Driver or Mad Dog it should have stuck with that but instead we got this wishy washy mess where Ga On jumped from one side to the other not sure whether he wanted to join Yo Han or prosecute him for constantly working outside the law. It made Ga On feel like an idiot and super flaky and it took away from Jin Young's incredible acting and I mean seriously between that and Ji Sung's beauty we could only shelf our disbelief for so long. I think the other thing about this show was the fact that so many characters existed for no reason. Like Soo Hyun who I loved with Ga On was only there to be Ga On's love interest and a stick in the mud who refused to see things other than black and white. All in all this show was a mess and really I think I blame the writer more than anyone else which is unfortunate cause he wrote Miss Hammurabi which was leagues more clear than this show. I guess I'd give this show a 6.5 / 10

FINISHED You Are My Spring (16/16): When Kang Da Jung finds a job at a five-star hotel, she rises to the manager position faster than any of her fellow employees who were hired at the same time as her. Her problem is that she takes after her mother’s poor choice of men and dates men who are terrible like her father. Meanwhile. Joo Young Do is a psychiatrist who helps others heal their emotional wounds and find the will to live. However, he himself bears his own scars from not having been able to save his older brother and one of his patients. The two, suffering from traumatic childhoods, form a heartfelt bond when they become entangled in a perplexing local murder case.

If you're reading this review you might be one of the few people like me who managed to somehow stumble through this drama and get to the end. Now don't get me wrong this drama for sure is one of the best I've watched this year but it fell to the same problem a drama like Strong Woman Do Bong Soon had where we the collective audience are here for the soft romance but the show keeps wanting to interrupt the soft for some murder shenanigans and I swear to you that even as I finished up the final episode I still fast-forwarded through most of the stuff that was murder/cop related and because of that I really still don't know or care for that side of the story. The funny thing about that though is that if a murder mystery show with romance was literally made for anyone it would have been me but this drama really didn't seem to care about the murder side of this show and tacked it on here and there without really connecting the ensemble to it so you could literally watch this show and not pay a single attention to the other half! Having said that the romance made this show worth watching. I'm so into male leads who are not only competent but gentle and smooth and man oh man is it so sexy to have a male lead that isn't traumatized and acts like the fully grown adult he is. There's no part of me that wonders why Da Jung fell for him! I also have to say that the ensemble was all fun to watch and the final ships were interesting to follow as well though I do wish that most of Eun Ha and Tae Jung's relationship didn't happen offscreen. On the whole I'd give this show a 9 / 10.

CDRAMA

FINISHED You Are My Glory (24/24): A story that follows an aerospace engineer Yu Tu and the shining star Qiao Jing Jing. A decision is made to start gaming in order to save her endorsement deal brings her face to face with an old crush. As they grow closer, the two forge ahead to become each other's glory. Being a well-known celebrity, Qiao Jing Jing has to keep up with appearances in order to maintain her multi-faceted image. Alas, one starts to crack when someone leaks a video of her playing an online game and being terrible at it which is completely inconsistent with the image she has created for herself as the game's ambassador. Thus, she joins a gaming competition to prove her skills and to prevent herself from losing her endorsements. Qiao Jing Jing decides to use all of her free time towards improving her game and her decision leads her to reconnect with her old high school classmate, Yu Tu, whom she once had a crush on. He was a legend at their school, outstanding in everything that he does, while Qiao Jing Jing was just your average girl. Yu Tu went on to become an aerospace engineer who is also an expert gamer. It seems that the online game brought them together once more so she asks him to become her gaming coach.

I'm a little heartbroken that this show has come to an end cause for a few weeks now this has been my favorite airing show! I mean it was literally full of everything I adore with a terribly cute main couple and low drama. Reba was the most adorable cute puppy as Jing Jing and Yang Yang was smolderingly handsome as Yu Tu. Honestly I think he might have been my favorite character that Yang Yang has played cause he had the angst from Martial Universe (season 2 more than 1 but I digress), the playfulness from King's Avatar, and the devotion from Love O2O. I loved the way the two began this show as friends and the way that it was so clear what parts of Jing Jing Yu Tu fell in love with. I love that he struggled with his own insecurities before they dated rather than having an external force play a factor. I loved how soft the two became once they started dating and that they actually felt like a real couple who weren't afraid to touch each other rather than the typical overly shy reaction that most cdrama and kdrama women have even after they start dating the male lead. Watching this show was like wrapping yourself in a blanket and I swear if you like soft fluffy modern day cdramas then this is the watch for you! Without a single doubt in my mind I would rate this show a 10 / 10 and say that it's definitely in the ranking for my favorite drama of 2021!

TWDRAMA

FINISHED Back To 1989 (21/21): A successful young man has always felt something missing in his life because he never knew his father. At 26, Che Chen is already a successful assistant manager for an investment trust. But he was raised by his single mother Chen Mu and never knew the identity of his father, and that void has been nagging at him. But a freak accident sends Che back 27 years into the past, to the year before he was born. When he meets 22-year-old Zhen Zhen Ye, Che realizes that this naïve and trusting young woman is his mother's best friend! When Che realizes that anything he does in the year 1989 could alter his mother’s future, will he do anything to alter the course of his own life?

Wow don't you just straight up love when you fall in love with a new show?? I wasn't sure if I wanted to watch this show at first cause I'm not usually the biggest fan of time travel shows but at the same time Marcus Chang was starring and I'm high key in love with him so I bit the bullet cause I wanted to watch a romance and I'm so glad I did. It reminds me a lot of Hit The Top mixed with Nine: Nine Times Time Travel with the way it focused on a child getting to know a younger version of their parent and the angst of realizing that time travel is a damper on romances. I absolutely adored the relationship between Chen Che and Zhen Zhen cause not only did the actors have tons of chemistry but one of my favorite types of main couples are the ones that bicker and argue and flirt like crazy to show their love and that's exactly what we got here. I mean look okay the ending was a little too tie this with a red bow to make all that sense but if I get my happy ending then I'm happy! I also really loved the relationship between Chen Che and his mom too though I can't help but feel like the entire assault storyline for her wasn't focused on enough and brushed aside for other things which kinda sucks but I did love that though Chen Che didn't end up changing everything for the better, his presence alone changed things enough to keep his mom from being completely miserable like in his first life. I would definitely give this show a 10 / 10!

xoxo Allie