It’s either love or luck; you can’t have both.

The concept is relatively new – it’s literally about love and gambling – something you rarely see focused on every now and then in Asian movies. The premise of this movie is straightforward: two strangers use their 'luck' to gamble their way out of debt and fall in love. The main conflict has already been established right from the beginning, making it easier for the audience to just enjoy the whole story without having to think much about it. The only thing that will leave the audience anticipating is how they will deal with the cardinal rule of being ‘life charms’ – that neither of them can fall in love with each other. Even though the plots flow smooth and nicely, they leave little to the imagination. The clichés are expected too. But since it’s a rom-com, I’m well aware that I shouldn't expect much.

In my opinion, Jericho Rosales and Bela Padilla’s acting is what elevates this rom-com. It’s refreshing to see Jericho play an imperfect, pitiful, uncharismatic character, which deviates from the serious-sappy persona he usually portrays. Bela naturally and effortlessly nailed the typical hopeless romantic character - I love her! I’m amazed by the great chemistry Jericho and Bela have, considering that this is the first time they are paired together. The 'falling in love’ scenes are so natural, making it impossible to not smile like an idiot. Despite not being a love team, the tandem of the two actors makes the movie a very entertaining romantic watch. I hope they can act together again in the future. Overall, this is well-made and well-acted escapism fluff, and I enjoyed it.

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The battle of the comebacks

The idea of the "battle of the comebacks" appeals to me because it gives exposure to some groups and soloists who are not very popular and gives them a good comeback platform. Queendom has some of the greatest stage performances - AOA's rendition of Mamamoo's Egotistic is incredible, G-IDLE final stage 'Lion' is wow!

If I based my review on the performances alone, I would rate this show a 9. But, knowing how biased Mnet's survival show voting system is, I can't rate it higher. It's frustrating to see some good performances being robbed of their deserved victory. It's obvious that fanbase size determines the winner. And the misleading editing will always be a bummer. Favoritism in Mnet shows is insufferable.

On a broader note, I recommend watching this if you enjoy music, dance, and performances. Seeing the contestants' level of production in each stage performance is very exciting.

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Not a bad adaptation

As someone who follows the anime, I think this movie accomplishes what Jigoku Shoujo ought to have. Although this version has better and darker plots than the 2006 series, there are a few key points that are missing, such as the tattoo and the boat scene, that make the movie slightly unsatisfactory. Overall, it's not a bad adaptation. Tamashiro Tina did a good job of delivering the similarity of the Enma Ai eerie vibe from the anime version. The supporting characters - Hone Onna, Ichimoku Ren, and Wanyoudo, could have more engaging plots than simply being the assistants with little dialogue.

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