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Jae Joong’s back with his much anticipated post-military comeback drama “Manhole: Feel So Good”. The comedic time travel drama did not reap in high ratings but scored as the 3rd lowest rated drama of the time slot.

Nonetheless, I pretty enjoyed the drama, which brought me some laughter & entertainment value. There’s a little of 那些年, but also a lot of fun and energy with its young and energetic cast.

It is interesting to discover many things that he had missed out through the years and while trying to put things right, it creates a ripple/ butterfly effect and would affect the future.

It’s pretty entertaining when you see Bong Pil becoming an entirely person after he returns from the past every time, such as being a gangster, someone in comatose with his soul wandering around, policeman, etc. It also alters the future and relationships between his friends. It’s pretty hilarious when you see him “living” a life that is so diverse beyond his imagination, every 12 hours.

You also feel his exasperation and turmoil when no one else believes whatever he said, because no one will remember what happened after he returns to the present. He just kept repeating his life in a different manner and it just draws Soo Jin apart from him as time goes by with all the misunderstandings.

是否回到了过去，就能逆转人生呢? 若人生能从来，你会做一样还是不一样的选择呢?

在几次回到年轻时候的过程，丰必也发现了许多事情绝非”偶然”。

每个人都有”邪恶”的一面。即便是最好的朋友，也有可能在某一瞬间，为了私欲，做了某件事情，而阻挠了你们的未来。

当然故事也想告诉我们，若有什么话想对身边的人说，就应该尽早告诉他们，不要等到一切都来不及了，才来后悔。

If you remember the villain in “Strong Woman, Do Bong Soon”, Jang Mi Kwan is back as another 令人咬牙切齿的 antangonist. He’s really got the potential, and gives you the chills sometimes as someone with anger management issues and would turn very violent when things don’t go his way. We may see another “Namgoong Min” in the making, in terms of his potential in attempting “villainous” route.

While this drama may not be that well received, it still serves as a nice 无厘头 rom-com. It’s good to be able to re-live your adolescent years from high school to university, etc and all the excursions you had with your friends.

A little bit of 那些年 is good. The skies, the sea and your bunch of friends…

That’s typically heaven already.

If you are a fan of Jaejoong, I’m sure you will pull through it and be thrilled with all the surprises he would give with his new outfits and images.Read More →

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Midnight Runners, is all you need after a hard week at work, to keep you entertained on a Friday night. It’s like chilling with Lemon or Lime Mojito, with a refreshing twist to kick-start your weekend and it would leave you with a sweet after taste.

There’s not just lotsa laughter, but also an eye feast (literally), with young, hot bods (6 packs, biceps, triceps) of 2 rising stars (Park Seo Joon & Kang Ha Neul) in Korea. 所谓的 “青春热血”，会让你血脉膨涨。

You get a bit of everything from action to comedy, visual aesthetics (no romance though), yet not excessively violent or bloody like many action-packed Korean movies may get. It’s pretty well-balanced and well-paced. It isn’t draggy and there’s no time for boredom.

As the title says it, there’s a lot, a lot of running during midnight. The action scenes are bound to keep you breathless while watching the guys sprint their way from long winding roads to narrow alleys. You can literally label them as “Running Men”.

You’d be laughing half the time with the hilarious things they do, yet it did not fall into the category of slapstick comedy.

There’re some societal topics being brought out in the movie,

1) Putting self before others, or vice versa?

2) How materialistic people are these days. Before you decide to be friends with someone, you would assess their societal status.

3) Would you challenge red tape and protocol, if someone’s life is at stake?

4) Are you doing what you enjoy? Do you understand the rationale of why you are doing what you are doing now?

We all need to explore, to understand ourselves further.

年轻就是本钱。

It’s never too late to revive that fire in your heart, no matter what your passion or dream was/is.

You only live once, and you should not regret what you did not do.

There are dark moments but the light-heartedness of the friendship between the 2 leads, make it a very enjoyable journey to watch these recruits grow and mature in the movie.

This movie is definitely worth a ticket to the cinema over the weekend.

I’m sure it’s not just for swooning female fans, the guys would like it too.Read More →

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It’s a well-thought out, simple but impactful gig, for Derrick Hoh to bid farewell to the current phase of his music career, before he embarks on the next phase to embrace new challenges. It was a cosy but intimate, heartfelt sharing session, which connected the home-grown singer with his fans.

The concept of this mini concert should be “Back to Basics, Simplicity at its Best”, with no frills no thrills but 满满的诚意和感谢。

今天的演出就是那种很简单，但很舒服的一场音乐分享会。没有华丽的服装或舞台效果，就是简单的小舞台，吉他手和键盘手伴奏。他就唱着自己喜欢的歌曲给喜欢和支持他的人听。也只有在这样的场合，他才能敞开心扉的多分享这些年来的点滴。

There were about 17 or more songs in the set list which include 为梦想闪耀，晴天， 柠檬甜甜的, 换我爱你， 做你的他, 当我知道你们相爱，每时每刻，变化，假装不了，All I want, 我恨我爱你, Love Song, 原谅我, 我不會唱歌, 克罗地亚的天空, 你走天桥，我走地下道…

还记得12年前的自己是什么模样吗? 当时的自己怀抱着什么梦想和理想?

现在的你, 已实现了你的梦想, 依然追寻着, 还是已经放弃了呢?

It hasn’t been 一眨眼 for Derrick Hoh but the little chipmunk from“Project Superstar” has grown and matured over the years, yet still keeping his 初衷.

还记得”绝对 Superstar”时, 许多评判都说他唱歌像是嘴里含着糖一样。

但其实，我觉得咬字清晰固然重要，但那也何尝不是他的各人特色?

听他唱着这些歌, 脑海里会有许多回忆浮现。 His voice is still as soothing and gentle to the ears.

Sincerity definitely can be felt.

There was also an additional autograph and photo taking session whereby Derrick could express his thanks to his fans and also for the fans to be able to give him some encouragement and support while bringing back some fond memories.

Thanks for the heartfelt performance.

Jiayou, my favourite little chipmunk from Project Superstar~

We’ll see you around and looking forward to more works from you!Read More →

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Is it 超時空男臣 or 超时空男神?

If it’s a combination of the 3 leads, 大军的行侠仗义，武功超逸，一波的聪明绝顶，和有小冬那温柔细心的个性和那厨艺。。 我想，那就是所谓真正的”男神”。 但有这三位男臣的大小姐，就同等于借住了男神的力量，凡事都能逢凶化吉。

While time travel dramas (be it to the ancient times or future) may not be something new, 超時空男臣 which just ended its broadcast in Hong Kong last week, raved in ratings of 30 towards the ending few episodes. Having just binged-watch the drama for the last few days, the ending still has its lingering post-withdrawal syndromes on me.

“明朝三傻” – 袁崇焕/云大军 (大将军)， 左光斗／冯一波 (侍郎)， 李进忠／李小冬 (太监)，和太子妃 (大明星汪以珊 )来到了现代，制造了不小笑话，但也和”凤鸣居”酒楼一家人成为了宾主关系和建立了友情。其中云大军 & 李小冬也分别和饰演大小姐方惠芝的田蕊妮和二小姐方惠玲的朱晨丽,谱出了跨时代恋曲。

剧中除了有高潮叠起的剧情，也有许多的欢笑和泪水。即便过了400年, 人性始终没有改变。这世上依旧会有贪图利益，不择手段的小人，但也会有肝胆相照, 讲义气的侠义之人。

当你以为这”明朝三傻”只是为了帮凤鸣居而在茶楼里帮忙20多集，那就错了。 他们会随着故事的延续而有所大变身，详细内容还是自己去看这部剧集吧。

“小李子”何广沛 , 应该是初尝爆红的滋味。萧正楠保养有术，依旧帅气，不像40岁。曹永廉也不像50几岁。三位男臣的组合很新鲜，也有许多令人欣喜的火花。

Am so going to miss 袁崇焕/云大军 & 大小姐,左光斗／冯一波 & 汪以珊／太子妃, 小冬 & 二小姐 & everyone from 凤鸣居..Oh yes and that “大海无量”.

You will love their love lines but at the same time, feel that there should be more to it…

So, please have a sequel so that we can have a better new ending!Read More →

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What is your one wish, if it would be granted by the Water God?

While there are reviews that the drama is not living up to viewers’ expectations and its initial hype since it is often being compared with “Goblin”, fans of Nam Joo Hyuk, Krystal and Gong Myung would be delighted to see them donning pretty outfits that make them look like models on the fashion walkway.

While chemistry may be lacking in various forms between Nam Joo Hyuk and Shin Se Kyung, there is still much entertainment value in earlier episodes, especially when the divine Water God lost his powers in the mortal world and created a fool out of himself and the people around him. The bickering and chemistry between Krystal and Gong Myung is not to be missed.

Lim Ju Hwan’s acting as the main antagonist is pretty commendable as well.

Despite it being a not so engaging drama that couldn’t leave footprints in your heart even at the end of the 16 episodes, there are pretty funny and entertaining moments that we should give them credit for. I think it is still worth a watch if you need your fix of fantasy romance idol dramas and if you are a fan of any of the above cast.

Perhaps what they could have done was to strengthen the storyline and add on to some intensity with some CGI and fighting scenes, to make up for the lack of emotional engagement.
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