Zíza

We follow the story of several characters, and we know from the beginning that something terrible is going to happen. But we don't know how it happened or why it happened. As time goes on, we slowly uncover the history of all the "N"s that appear here. It's well portioned and presented properly to the viewer, so that you still want to know what happened but there’s no risk you will get annoyed by having only questions without getting any answers. We're looking not just at the story of how young innocent souls were drawn into a crime, but also a story of great friendship and great tragic love. Certainly a very interesting series where I was surprised by Eikura Nana's performance (I’d never considered her a particularly good actress before, but here it appears that the baton of a capable director can squeeze a good performance out of her) and Koide Keisuke along with Kubota Masataka just proved that they really understand their craft. A weaker 4 stars.

The series partially reminded me of Antique. In fact, it’s one of those treasured older Japanese series that tells its story at its own pace, manages to entertain, has a multi-layered story, deals with multiple characters, and is patient – it has a certain touch of something close to home that can warm the soul. Admittedly, I didn't enjoy the first episode and thought this might not be my cup of tea, but I ended up liking the Japanese potty humor. All the cartoons that flicker through the series have their charm, and of course the biggest one is the cafe owner himself, whose name is so funny I almost fell out of my chair when I heard it. Admittedly, I wasn't entirely thrilled with the ending, but it wasn't all that bad after all, and there was still that lovely feeling about the whole series that lingered. A weaker 4 stars.

A fun story from the high school setting. Heisuke was naive and burdened by his sins, Risa was tough and could be a comfort to more than a few souls who had sinned. It's not just the students' problems that are addressed here, but also the adults', and that everyone has something on their minds. Fortunately, instead of heartbreaking scenes, we get comedy, so the series fits well as a relaxing affair when you don't want to be disturbed by the tragic lives of others. Yes, there's some drama here too, but thankfully it's nothing to make you roll your eyes and plug your ears. And in the end, it's actually a pretty cute love story.

This series just doesn't have anything that can really get you excited. It might have your favorite actor or actress in it, the plot might sound interesting, but in the end, it turns out to be something bland with no spark. In the beginning it spits out one mystery after another, which of course you want to solve, but rather than slowly dispensing certain clues, the series just adds more mysteries until there are so many that you lose interest. Yes, you still want to know how it's going to turn out, but no longer with any enthusiasm, just human nature taking over: "So what the hell was it anyway?" and not with any viewing pleasure. You could say that the series consists of 40% quite interesting scenes and 60% pure boredom. Even the acting couldn't save it, and it's hard to say whether it was the script or their incompetence. I finished watching it and the ending wasn't surprising, just lengthy; it makes you think: "Is this what I've been waiting for all this time? I've wasted my time!" Boring.

It's a really good picture. Beautiful setting, great acting, and the story was above average. The voiceover was very nice, too – it matched the overall feel of the setting. Even though it was over two hours long, it went by quite quickly. It's nothing action-packed, just a simple historical (love) story from the lives of several women.

A bit of a dramatic detour between the first and second installments of Library War. We meet the protagonist's parents, we get a little insight into what her best friend is actually doing, and who her ex-suitor's brother is. But most importantly, we get to explore the love life of Komaki, played by the darling Tanaka Kei. Basically, although some drama is avoided, this is a pretty cool bridge between the action-packed ending of the first film and the dark second film. This special isn't a must-see, but if you like the gang, or perhaps any of the actors or actresses – and that there's a lot to choose from – go for it. It's not long, it's paced well, and the story is actually pretty good. A better 3 stars.

Poirot can be seen here as a broken man. A MAN. His grey brain cells still work, but that unshakable faith of his with which he judges all criminals has been shattered, which is why this treatment is the best of all for me, not to mention that it surpasses even the book. Very successful, not to mention a perfect plot and an excellent climax. And of course great performances, because without them it would have been half-hearted. Even though I know Murder on the Orient Express like the back of my hand, I watched it slowly with the feeling that I had absolutely no idea what was going to happen – I just genuinely enjoyed it.

Someone needs to keep the bar high for these ratings. Both actors were bad, the supporting actors didn't shine either, even the animals didn't do much. A romance through and through, there's nothing better than stalking the object of your affection and forcing them into things they don't want to do. On the other hand, when the object of your love is a twit, there may not be any other way. Below the average of Korean romances; you’d do better to dive into a movie, or three, to match the running time. Everything is all wrapped up in cheap garb. The soundtrack didn't impress, so it's no wonder I remember absolutely nothing of it. A nice single star, with a plus so I’m not too greedy.

A wet dream come true for everyone who shipped the siblings in Kill Me, Heal Me, right? It was only while watching this series that I realized what the big deal is – Hwang Jeong-eum is actually a pretty bad actress. And apparently her voice is annoying. The series is just a typical romantic comedy about how the down-on-her-luck heroine got her happiness. There’s something slightly above average about Choi Si Won’s character, he was the person I would have chosen, and it wouldn't have been just because the bearded Si Won looks so much better than the clean-shaven one... In truth, I actually didn't really feel like finishing the series, I downright forced myself to do so, since I wasn't having much fun from about the fifth episode on. Of course it had those snuggly scenes where you tear up, as well as the ones where you feel anxious or laugh, but the overall impression was more boring than anything else. Whenever Kim Shin-hyuk (Si Won) was on set it was fine, it had some energy, but then it just left with him. Although by the end he didn't have as much of it either; I guess he was starting to realize he was going to the military and wasn't happy about it... A weaker 3 stars.

Everybody gets older, and it's nothing pleasant. Even a genius like Sherlock has to get old, and I understand that it's not easy to watch because in our minds he's still a young man with a sharp mind and keen judgement. If you don't want to see a detective icon slowly being eaten away by senility, there's no point in watching this film, but if you want to see some reconciliation with his over-intelligence and the life it brought, maybe it's not such a bad choice after all. If you have an aversion to old age, this film will disgust you. I've had the good fortune to meet the senile Sherlock before in the books in The Final Solution, but this film version is much better. Because he has someone to share that loneliness with.