Now this is what I call a groundbreaking, original and feminist take on the Sherlock Holmes myth. As much as I liked Elementary, except for making Watson female, it really wasn't anything special despite being hailed that way. But this one?

Sherlock? Female. Watson? Female. Moriarty? Female. Mary? Male. A complete gender switch of the main characters. And yet they were still Sherlock and Watson and Moriarty! Especially Watson - or Wato - with her PTSD because this Watson actually was in a war zone, she was injured, all the things I was missing in Elementary. Thank you, Miss Sherlock, thank you!

The only character who kept his gender was Mycroft - or Kento here - but I adored his relationship with Sherlock. They bickered but very friendly, affectionately, they loved each other very much, you could actually feel it! And the infinite trust between them!

Fascinating cases, a fantastic build-up of a great friendship, many call backs to Doyle's original - even the Reichenbach Falls! And the final case was so good! I loved that it focused on both Sherlock and Wato, that they were both involved, that Wato wasn't a bystander. I truly, honestly, deeply loved it!

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A very short and entirely angst-free Cdrama. Like, there's no angst whatsoever. Not even a smidgen. It's all fluff and good feels. All the parents are loving and reasonable and sweet, the brothers love each other very much and except for this one jealous girl nobody is trying to break up the main couple, just the opposite, everyone is rooting for them and... yeah.

A teeth-rotting fluff led by a cast full of newbies who have fantastic chemistry. If you ever feel like watching something that will make you smile like a goof and that won't make your heart hurt, then this is the drama for you. Sunshine and candyfloss, that's this drama, basically.

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This is, hands down, one of the best Cdramas I've ever seen.

Based on the name, you would think it was a cutesy comedy, right? Wrong! It's an action thriller about a Violent Crime Unit and it takes place in several countries, in cities and in the jungle, there are drugs, murders and explosions and it's so action driven and suspenseful! Ah-mazing!

I loved Xu Xu. She was so smart and also so strong despite being petite and, well, snail-like in anything physical. But she worked hard on herself and she overcame so many hurdles - and Ji Bai, once he overcame his instant dislike of her because she had been forced on him by his superiors, always stood by her side and encouraged her and showed her the way and their relationship was just so good!

I loved how this drama was shot, using steady-cam and shaky cam, drone and CCTV footage. The cinematography was marvelous thanks to that. Just marvelous. And the music! The sound mixing in this was heavenly, the thump-thump-thump during the suspenseful moments always got me. I loved it.

I can highly recommend this drama to anyone who likes thrillers with a smidgen of romance and a lot globe-hopping and action. It's just 21 eps, 30+ min. each, but it's so worth it!

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The reveal of the killer and the callousness of that person really surprised me, that was a great twist. But overall, it wasn’t all that suspenseful a mystery, wasn’t it? And sometimes, I felt like petting our heroes and telling them, “You cute but you stupid, ain’t you?”

Luckily, where the show was really strong was the chemistry between the actors playing the various pairs, Bun and Tan, Tat and Sorn and even M and Oat, as little as we saw of them together - but that we even did get to see them together, that they gave us this hint of them possibly becoming more, that we witnessed them laughing together, I really appreciated that, that was surprising and not at all unwelcome, thumbs up. And I honestly hope that we get to see these actors playing couples again (as it sometimes happens in Thai dramas), that would be awesome!

I think my greatest happy surprise and discovery here was Great Sapol who played Inspector M. What a good looking man and a great actor! I’ll have to check and see if his other dramas are available with subs because, gosh... what a man!

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I think they couldn’t quite decide what they wanted this drama to be, if a school romance or an epic fantasy, a serious drama or a comedy, if they wanted one super mighty lead character or if they wanted the day to be saved by the power of friendship. And somewhere in this, the story got lost. It could’ve been quite epic if they only focused more on the actual story instead on various school shenanigans and whatnot. Oh well...

What I did love was the CGI of Li Xuan’s powers - when the writers allowed him to use them, that is, which happened rarely. And it’s too bad because when he kicked butt, he kicked butt big time.

Another thing that I loved was the friendship between Li Xuan and his bodyguard, Changqing. The actor who played Changqing, Zhang Cengceng, was amazing, he had this quiet power about him. Unfortunately, like with many other things in this drama, Li Xuan and Changqing’s relationship kinda got lost in the kerfuffle around the middle and then it simply... fizzled out.

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I was looking for something very short - it’s only 4 eps, 10 mins. or so each - to fill my time and this one drew me in because it featured actors from Gen Y. Pretty much everyone in this drama(let) is in Gen Y. So... yeah.

Because it’s so short, there isn’t really space for big twists or any real development but it’s still a cute story. A veterinarian comes to a resort to nurse his broken heart and meets a cute bartender with a heart of gold. And that’s it. But it’s cute, the actors have really nice chemistry and... well, there are bunnies.

Also, despite being short, it doesn’t look cheap. The cinematography is really nice, the picture quality is HQ and the title song is really catchy. I think it’s worth your 50 mins. or so even if it’s just the beginning of their story.

PS: There is a sequel!

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Found Family Trope

I really liked the found family trope in this drama. I’m a sucker for it. And when it’s mixed with supernatural and humor? Then I’m all the more for it! Also, that Yeo Rin was all “I’m here to save my man!” at the end? W00t! That’s so up my alley because I love it when the usual cliché gender roles are flipped!

Also, this was the first drama that I’ve seen where Choi Won Young played the good guy. Gosh, he’s so good as as one of the good guys. Why have I only seen him playing baddies so far? Unfair!

I have to say, though, it was good that the drama only had 12 eps. As it was, I ended up fast-forwarding through some of their shenanigans, through bits where the drama went too far and slipped from humorous into silly. So, I’m glad that they didn’t go for the usual 16 because I can’t even imagine what silly padding they would’ve used.

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A Noona Story

This drama took the trope of an unapproachable man and the sweet girl who saves him - a trope so prevalent and much loved in Western cinema - and turned it on its head. Here we got Shin Joo Yeon, a 33-year-old female fashion marketing director, brutal in her ways of speaking and reserved to downright cold in her emotional expressions, and Joo Wan, a 26-year-old male songwriter in touch with his heart and with the world around him - and very much in love with Shing-Shing, as he calls her. It’s basically the story of Kai and Gerda, just reversed, where Joo Wan has to help Shin Joo Yeon learn how to cry again and thaw her heart.

This drama features two of my favorite tropes: cold woman/warm man and older woman/younger man. There’s much emotional hurt on Joo Wan’s part in this - on Shin Joo Yeon’s too but for different reasons - because Shin Joo Yeon is very harsh to him, especially in the beginning and only his love for her and his determination to see her happy - whether with him or with someone else truly worthy of her doesn’t matter to Joo Wan - keeps him going and sticking by her side. It’s a fun and funny story but also very emotional and sweet with a really wonderful OST.

I watched it mainly because my favorite Thai actor, New Thitipoom, will star in the Tai remake as the male lead - and I’m sure he’s going to be absolutely glorious because these parts suit him perfectly! - but I ended up loving the drama for its own sake. It’s definitely worth it if you want to watch a bit different love story.

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After a slow start, this turned out to be a really great series. I felt that it gave all the characters and all the couples space and time enough to grow - though for once, I didn’t fall for the main couple (BohnDuen) but for the secondary one (KingRam).

I truly fell in love for KingRam and their odd yet so fitting relationship: King, who was used to plants as his companions, fell hard for Ram who rarely talked; and Ram, who preferred the company of his dogs, found someone who truly got him without him needing to say anything at all in King. Also, King sure got his share of whump, so there was that, hah!

But the main couple, BohnDuen, I didn’t like how their issues were resolved. It felt too little, too late. Maybe it’ll be addressed in S2 - one can always hope - but I doubt it. It’s strange that the writers did such a great job with KingRam yet they - at least in my opinion - fumbled the main couple so much. Huh.

I’m definitely looking forward to S2 and to more KingRam and also FrongThara. Because Frong is in for an uphill battle with Thara who is very kind and sweet - but also the biggest oddball of them all. Also, I hope to see Ting Ting finally get herself a boyfriend - Tang, if there’s any justice at all in the world! Can’t wait!

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Well, you can’t really call this a “series”, it’s actually just a 2 episode special with Mean & Plan playing their characters from ReminderS, Two & Wish. And I liked it. There was some angst, sure, but overall it was more of a slice-of-life story set some time after their graduation with Two having a successful career by then & Wish being still unemployed and feeling like a burden to his hard-working lover.

I liked how different 2Wish was from TinCan, the other pairing these two actors are famous for. And I especially loved Mean’s portrayal of Two because I really, truly believed that Two was head over heels in love with Wish and it was sweet and wonderful. Mean sure is a great actor.

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Now there was an oddball of a drama. Dead bodies everywhere, literally - I don’t think I’ve ever seen this many corpses in such a short drama before - shoot-outs that could rival Hollywood blockbusters and the CIA, of course. And Taemin with blue hair and blue eyes. Also lens flares. JJ Abrams would’ve been proud!

I liked the drama. For all its weirdness I still liked it because it was intriguing and action-filled and had a lot of whump in it. Seriously, this is one huge whump fest. I do wish that they put more effort into the relationship between Sion & Ryo but I still didn’t feel like Ryo’s decision to fulfill Sion’s last wish at all cost came out of left field or something, I still understood why Ryo did what he did, so…

And, this being a Japanese show, ambivalent ending, of course. Because why not, right? Make of it whatever you want. Typical, ha!

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Goodness gracious, Korn & Knock are one of the hottest BL couples out there, hands down, and their actors, Max & Tul, certainly have no constraints when it comes to portraying love scenes. Woo, boy, is it hot here? I mean, these two…

The story itself was also interesting, especially the vindictiveness of the various girlfriends, Knock’s in particular. Murder Club 101! They sure went the extra mile to get revenge. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I hate cheating and cheaters but, girls, just break up with them, that’s enough. Especially when you’re not all that innocent yourself. On the other hand, it sure made the story more interesting…

I also loved all the friendships in this series. Especially Yiwha was amazing, the way she rooted for Korn and Knock, her friendship with Korn, her determination to prove that Knock’s girlfriend was an evil mastermind… Great girl, that one.

I’m aware that there’s a certain controversy surrounding the plot of S2 but I will still watch it because a) Korn & Knock are burning hot and b) Max & Tul are just great in these roles. Needs must.

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The tone of the second season was very much different from the first one. The first one was all humor and mad shenanigans. The second one was about how their relationships changed when, well, life got in the way: classes, internships, long distance…

My favorite part was the Pick & Rome arc. Because they actually got a real arc this time around. And it was a suspenseful one! Whereas Emma & Porsche got the “life got in the way” arc, Pick & Rome had to deal with an obsessive stalker who was trying to drive them apart. Especially Off Jumpol could really flex his acting muscles here. And by the end of the drama, I could honestly say that I added Pick & Rome to my list of favorite BL couples.

My favorite ep was definitely the finale because we had the chance to see them all together again, to watch them actually talk and deal with their issues like the adults they were. And the drama is truly at its best when the gang is together.

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This was a sweet, funny and feel-good series. The four leads were hilarious and their friendship heartwarming, and both the het couple and the gay couple were precious. The actors pulled it off so well, both the madhat shenanigans and the feels.

This was only my second drama with either Gun Atthaphan or Off Jumpol after Theory of Love where they also portrayed a couple and their relationship in this one was rather similar, though not as angsty, I would say, at least not here. From what I understand, it gets angstier in the sequel, so…

Also, the female lead was played by Cherreen Nachjaree who played ChaAim in Love By Chance. ChaAim and Pond are probably my favorite het couple in Thai dramas, and Cherreen was just as sweet and amazing here.

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This drama had a great premise - and it featured Earth Pirapat, so yay! - but it just didn't click with me much. The characters' reactions always seemed a bit... off for me and the last two eps, almost twice the length of a normal episode, dragged terribly. So even though it only had 10 eps, it still felt too long.

There was nothing inherently wrong with this drama and it felt quite ambitious because it tried do squeeze so much into the story - from various social issues to ecology - and there was only one pairing so the story wasn't scattered all over the place but it still felt... well, off. It's hard to describe why. It just bored me a little.

Still, I'm giving it 7/10 for its ambitiousness and for definitely telling a different kind of a story from the usual university shenanigans.

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