what’s on my mind grapes

thoughts thrown into the ether

[backgroundcheddar]

give me all the tea

I started watching Glory because despite the fact that I'm in the middle of 4 other shows I have developed cdrama-adhd and needed to start another one right now and I must talk about it.

Glory is about a tea heiress and she has to select a husband. The FL's family holds a bachelorette type contest but instead of dates the suitors go through tests but that's just the beginning. There's power plays, amnesia plot, murder, hidden agendas and literal tea involved. And I am fully sat for it.

I'm only on episode 12 and this might be premature because a lot can happen (things can get dumb real quick) but I love this so far. I think Glory is what Blossoms of Power would be if it was actually good.

I dropped Blossoms of Power because I could not for the life of me understand why all of the MLs were in love with the FL. The soul of a prince's wife inhabits the FL's body? Sure of course it did. The moon aligned at right time or whatever. FL has super smelling ability? Great. That would make a neat party trick. Sickly ML who we are constantly reminded has a very short time to live still doesn't die after placing himself in danger repeatedly? Cool. Good for him. What a trooper. All the MLs instantly falling in love with FL? Me:

The crown prince character is kinda fun (He Yu omg wow) but he is such a gary stu. And the FL is so dull. Like so dull. I just didn't understand her appeal at all so when all the MLs are doing the most to get her favor all I kept thinking is

I held on for 17 episodes solely for He Yu and Bu Shulin/Cui Jinbai but sadly it was not enough.

Glory has similar aspects to BOP with the multiple suitors and the FL is cold and indifferent and ML is the scheming type. However, despite being a cold and indifferent FL is likeable and ML is clever but not in a gary stu way. All the characters so far have been very interesting and have depth to them. By episode 12, the characters and the plot is better developed than in BOP. I'm very intrigue about what will happen next. So I'm very much in this for the long haul. I hope it maintains it.

Also Hou Minghao is in it. So there is that. (The other suitors are kinda cute too even the evil psycho one.)

Anyway, here are the other dramas I'm currently watching:

Overdo (A struggle. Mainly in it to admire Wang Churan and her outfits and hope for another unintentionally hilarious scene like the dive scene.)

The Shadow Sovereign (Trashy and fun. Very entertaining. )

Shadow Love (The whole turning into a kid thing was kinda weird but Cheng Lei looks fantastic with gray hair so obviously I'm going to continue.)

Love Beyond the Grave (I like the leads' chemistry in this one.)

[backgroundcheddar]

but daddy i can fix him

Here's a couple of toxic and problematic cdrama characters who I would gladly keep and follow despite them being awful people because they are so pretty and they're fictional so it's okay so indulge me in my delusions.

Some spoilers ahead.

Lost You Forever - Xiang Liu (aka 9-headed snake demon aka Live action Sesshoumaru aka Silver Haired Snake Demon King of My Heart)

So this list isn't in a particular ranked order except that Xiang Liu is #1 because LOOK. AT. HIM. I could stare at him forever.

He's an emotionally constipated asshole who will resort to violence when he is displeased but I can work with that. There's a lot of pros that comes with him. First, he has 9 heads and it might have been implied had different personalities so you'll never be bored with him and maybe one of them is somewhat nice or more reasonable? Second, he lives and can travel via a giant clam. Enough said. Third, his blood can let you breathe under water. Fourth, despite his rough personality he is extremely loyal and will literally give up his life and do anything for you once you earned a place in his demon heart.

His cons are he's unable to express how he truly feels (but can travel via giant clam) and he is determined to die in the battlefield. Again, I can work with that and I think the dying in battle can be negotiated. I would convince him to first travel and explore the world together via his giant clam and his pudgy pet bird and then go to battle and die together. This works because my ultimate goal would be to explore the world. After that, if he dies and I don't then I would no longer be able to look at his beautiful face so what's the point in continuing to live? So that's why we go into battle. We both achieve our goals this way. It's a win-win situation.

Generation to Generation - Mu Qingyan (aka Chang Ning aka Scammer Extraordinaire aka Should've Died From Blood Loss 10 Episodes Ago)

Holy face card batman. I'm okay with him scamming me.

I don't really think he's that bad. I mean he's manipulative and you'll never really know if he's lying to you but his scams and schemes ultimately were to the benefit of the FL.

We can work on this. Just need to convince him to communicate and share his plans. A couple that scams together are happier together.

I think the biggest problem with him is his propensity for coughing blood out every 5 seconds. We'll just have to schedule regular check ups with the doctor.

The Rise of Ning - Lu Jia Xue (aka Your Unfriendly (At First) Hot Temporarily Blind Neighbor)

If my neighbor looked like him, I would try to be less of an awkward turtle and not avoid social interactions.

So I kind of felt bad for him because it wasn't his fault that he had a falling out (literally) with the FL. It was the crazy lady he was engaged with that pushed her. He did do some bad things for power. He also got creepy and stalker-y after finding the FL again. But again, he wasn't the one that pushed the FL off a cliff so that's a point for him. He also learned to make those wooden doll things because the FL mentioned liking them and he took up paper cutting because it was the FL's hobby so that's nice and shows he's talented and pays attention. So he’s not completely irredeemable?

Pursuit of Jade - Qi Min (aka The True Heir aka You Know What I'm Okay With This)

Another silver/gray/white haired king. What is up with all the white haired characters being super hot but also they're always sick?

Anyway, his obsessive and possessive treatment of Qianqian was straight up abusive but I understand why he is like that. He's been abused and neglected his whole life so when Qianqian actually treated him like his life mattered enough to be saved he latched on.

Not gonna lie his intensity and his obsession with Qianqian was kinda hot so I would probably stick around and not run away. Offer to help him get his throne back whilst convincing him to kill less? Also would have to take him to a lot of therapy.

And I think that's it for now. Who are some other problematic cdrama faves I missed?

Just for the record this whole thing is unserious and an excuse to post about some pretty people and discuss cdramas. I would never advocate to stick around in a toxic relationship because you think you can fix them no matter how pretty or hot they may be. No one gets a pass to treat someone else like garbage just because they experienced trauma and abuse themselves. So if anyone reading this is in a toxic relationship, it's not your job to fix the other person and I suggest you run the other way. Okay byyyyeeeee!

[backgroundcheddar]

so i’m in my cdrama era

I started watching around late April this year so I’m fairly new to all of it but I’ve already consumed a lot because I have zero chill or a life.

As of today here’s the list of dramas I’ve finished, loved, got obsessed with and would highly recommend the most in no particular order:

The Prisoner of Beauty - has my favorite FL in any cdrama I’ve watched in Manman. I also loved how the romance developed. The last few episodes were a bit of a let down because of the lack of Manman but still a great watch overall.

How Dare You?!? - this has to be the most well rounded (funny, great plot, fun charcters, cute romance, mystery, court intrigue - it has it all) drama I watched and Wang Churan is gorgeous. This drama is just delightful with some gut wrenching moments.

Lost You Forever - best. angsty. romance. eveeerrrr. I have not found a drama that has come close to this in terms of the romance angst feels it gave me. I know everyone is obsessed with Xiang Liu and I am too because omg look at him (no seriously google him because I’m too lazy to include a photo but he is live action Seshoumaru) but to me the most compelling relationship is between Xiao Yao and Cang Xuan. Rip my fucking heart out why don’t you. That whole thing (the one involving tea) between the two of them in season 2 is some of the best acting I’ve seen in cdrama.

The Story of Kunning Palace - if I have to recommend a drama that’s most like Lost You Forever it would be this one. In terms of acting and emotional depth it really pales in comparison to it BUT this is a very entertaining drama with a good plot so it’s definitely worth watching.

I haven’t finished them but unless they completely shit the bed at the end I already consider the following dramas in my love them list and would recommend:

A Splendid Match - well developed romance and good political intrigue. Besides Tushan Jing from Lost You Forever you have the greenest flag ML in Chen Yanyun here.

Reset - the only modern drama I’ve liked so far. Although to be fair I haven’t tried a lot of modern dramas. I’m more of a costume drama kinda person. Anyway, really cool and intriguing time loop mystery plot with great characters.

Honorable mentions:

Arsenal Military Academy - republican era with great sets and costumes (all the suits and dresses are to die for). I like the found family aspect of this drama but the plot was kinda draggy and heavy on the propaganda and like with most gender bender shows it’s like really y’all did not notice she’s actually a girl? However the absolute highlight of this show is Xu Kai’s Gu Yanzhen. What an absolutely charming and shameless menace. He is my gold standard for that shamless ML type and I’ve found no one has come close to him. This made me a Xu Kai believer. I fucking get it now.

Generation to Generation - Zhou Yiran’s fucking face and voice holy shit. That’s it. That’s the whole plot. I mean sure other things happened I guess but his fucking face though. It’s crazy to me because in modern styling he does nothing for me but in costume drama? Damn.

Love Like the Galaxy - started fun with Zhao Lusi being really charming and funny. Got super draggy towards the middle and I felt like her character just remained immature. But I stuck around for one reason and that is Wu Lei as Ling Buyi. Thank you drama for introducing Wu Lei to my life. Will forever be grateful for that because omg wow.

The Long Ballad - it’s pretty damn long so a bit draggy but I like the political drama and most importantly has Wu Lei in it so a must watch. This also suffers from wait-really-y’all-could-not-tell-she’s-a-girl?? syndrome. You could clearly see Dilraba had boobs so I don’t understand. Also this has the legendary birds make out scene. You gotta watch to understand.

Fated Hearts - loved the first part where they were still enemies. The tension between the leads was fantastic but then dropped off a ledge once they got together. The ML’s sister is the fucking worst. I think people liked her storyline but she is the fucking worst and the only cdrama character I’ve hated.

Love in the Clouds - fun plot got a bit draggy towards the end. I definitely stayed for Hou Ming Hao. I did like Ji Bozai and Ming Yi’s romance.

Then these are the others that I have finished and they were entertaining for the most part but not my favorite:

Moonlight Mystique - great gowns beautiful gowns in cdrama form. I think I’m just not that into the fantasy costume genre. At least this drama introduced me to Dai Lu Wa who is great.

Pursuit of Jade - the gateway drug to cdramas. The two psychotic brothers’ plot lines were the best part.

Legend of the Female General - the absolute worst offender of the wait-really-y’all-could-not-tell-she’s-a-girl?? syndrome. Nothing about how Zhou Ye played He Yan/He Ru Fei read masculine. I legit question everyone’s sanity in this universe for believing even one second that she was male.

Till the End of the Moon - another great gowns beautiful gowns cdrama. Too many misunderstandings and used the date rape drug plot device too much like you guys really could not think of anything else? Okay then.

Are You the One? - this was fine. Nothing ground breaking storywise but introduced me to Wang Churan who is ridiculously beautiful. Anyway, I watched this drama because I fell into a Zhang Wanyi hole after Lost You Forever because he knocked that role out of the park and he has such a beautiful tone and cadence when he talks that I wanted to see more of him

The Rise of Ning - …and because of that Zhang Wanyi hole I found myself in I also watched this. This was okay. He played a character that was basically Cang Xuan but like the dollar store version of him. This show did introduce me to Ci Sha so kudos to the show for that.

Fireworks of My Heart - modern drama. Yang Yang and Wang Churan are beautiful together. Plot is meh. I thought Churan’s character was a bit too pathetic and l don’t understand how she couldn’t afford her own apartment and car after she renounced her family. Like girl is a surgeon do they pay minimum wage to surgeons in China? I don’t understand how she doesn’t have her own money.

And that’s it I think. The list of dramas I dropped is waaay longer and will be it’s own post if I ever feel like it. Peace!

[backgroundcheddar]

overdone

This is how I know Zhang Linghe is thick skinned or at least secured in his image because this dive scene in Overdo is kinda embarrassing and so fucking funny. I would have pulled a Beyonce and have had this footage erased forever and never to be seen by any living being.

It’s truly my favorite scene from any cdrama I’ve ever watched. Just brings me joy seeing this.

As for Overdo, my opinion is that it’s kinda of a trash heap that I can’t look away from. It’s overly dramatic, nonsensical and unintentionally funny a lot of the time. I’m not quite hate watching it because I don’t hate it but it’s definitely not good but it’s also kind of great because of how bad it is.

[backgroundcheddar]

a story of personal growth and maturity

I do this thing where I buy multiple drinks at a time when I go to tea places because I want to try multiple things but I already know I’ll be too lazy to go back another time so I just buy it all at once.

Anyway, the parking situation at this popular tea place is nightmarish but I finally got to go today and as much as I wanted to I only bought 3 instead of 5 drinks.

I think that shows character growth on my part. I practised restraint and I think that should be commended.

For the record, I only drink one drink at a time and put the rest in the fridge because I’m looking out for my future self who inevitably will crave some tea but is too lazy to put pants on and drive to the nearest tea shop.

[backgroundcheddar]

hate trains

in another episode of netizens overreacting and doing far too much, instead of getting more bts videos and pics from iu and bws for perfect crown they instead had to post apology letters due to the dumb controversy.

even before the finale the hate boner pile on i was seeing for this show was entirely too much and frankly seemed manufactured.

so for anyone who participated in the hating i hope that you step barefoot on lego bricks every day for the rest of your miserable lives.