dcemptor Reviews

Hidden Love (2023)

No. 1 in rankings!

[10/10 · 7 July 2023]

No. 1 in MyDramaList for top C-Dramas and overall (even beating out K-dramas)! Hidden Love is getting all the love it deserves!

For those who are still wondering or hesitating to watch this drama, just give it a try! It has a good storyline (nothing very stressful), lots of heartwarming scenes, nice visuals (Zhao Lu Si's clothes here are pretty and looks good on her!), beautiful soundtrack (Forever Star is especially written for this drama), superb acting (even the micro-expressions of the leads are spot-on), perfect chemistry between the main leads and even the supporting cast (sibling chemistry between Zhao Lu Si and Victor Ma, which we often don't get from dramas), and I don't know what else to say to convince you, the rankings don't lie! I will definitely miss waiting for new episodes to come. Congratulations to the cast and crew of Hidden Love!

Love Like the Galaxy (2022)

My Favourite Costume Drama!

[10/10 · 22 August 2022]

From the superb acting, captivating storyline and over-all great production, I was in awe with this series! What I love the most about this show is the how the characters and story were presented. The main leads' love story is very refreshing for me because we got to see how each of them grew individually with their experiences and how their relationship evolved through time. It is also my first time to watch a show which involves a ruling monarch who doesn't have a bad blood between the Emperor, the Empress and the Consort. It has a total of 56 episodes but I wish it was longer (but they stayed true for the most part from the novel). If you're looking to watch a show with political, romance, family, friendship, and comedy genres, then give this show a go.

Welcome (2020)

Hong-jo, the stray turned domesticated cat-boy

[9/10 · 30 March 2022]

I agree that this drama is very underrated. I laughed, smiled, cried, and empathised with the characters in the story. They were well-written and modeled after cats and dogs. The main couple were charming as well as the second couple. If in other dramas, even in Chinese dramas, you'd often feel like skipping the story of the second couple because they seem like fillers, but the second couple in this series was adorable. Both couples are like dogs and cats which are natural enemies but here, they fell in love. Even the parents in this drama were funny. All of them sorted out their differences and misunderstandings, some of which were thanks to our stray turned domesticated cat-boy, Hong-Jo. The actors were also exceptional and their portrayals will really make you see their cat/dog characteristics. If you're hesitating to watch this drama, give it a go and see for yourself. Maybe you won't look at your pet in the same way again after watching.

P. S. It's an (open) happy ending. I'd like to believe the webtoon Sol-A wrote and her story with Hong-Jo had a happy ending after all the waiting since there's not much explanation in the end.

Rookie Historian Goo Hae-Ryung (2019)

Light-hearted historical romcom drama worth a binge watch

[10/10 · 16 February 2022]

I'm not a huge fan of historical dramas but I gave this drama a try and I did not regret it. It has weaved the themes (romance, comedy, political) of the story perfectly without idling the audience and all the characters were well-written. The relationship between the characters (notably between the Crown Prince and Prince Do Won, sisterhood of the first female historians, Goo Hae Ryung and her maid, Goo Hae Ryung and her brother, Officer Min and Officer Yang) are also adorable and refreshing. The main couple have opposite personalities (they have on-screen chemistry even with the age gap - which was never an issue) but fell in love inspite of their differences and rank. They aspire different dreams but both wanted freedom (life outside the palace for Prince Do Won and freedom to choose a career for Goo Hae Ryung) which they got in the end. Overall, imo, this is worth a binge watch and I'd definitely watch the sequel if this drama gets one.

Dali and the Cocky Prince (2021)

Funny light-hearted romantic k-drama

[10/10 · 24 November 2021]

This drama has a simple and a little predictable storyline but how the story is narrated and how the actors portrayed their characters made this series something worth the watch. The female lead has a very impressive educational background however, she's like a lead for reverse-harem animés where the male characters needs to rescue her in times of need. In this story, she has 3 male leads who protects her. But with the circumstances that happened, she eventually learned to be a better person through the main male lead. As for the male lead, I can't say anything bad because the actor did very well in bringing his character to life. He wasn't well-educated like the female lead but he's street-smart and knows how to handle things on his own, having to learn things earlier than most people due to his past. The supporting characters were also good but the actress who played Sec. Yeo was the best supporting actress IMO. Her facial expressions were very funny. All in all, if you want to watch a light-hearted romantic comedy k-drama, I highly recommend to binge watch this series and probably, you'll also would like to hear the OST of this drama because every music played were beautifully chosen to express the mood of the scene. Kudos to the cast and crew of this series.