0:28 absoluteM gets right into it and mentions Pursuit of Jade.

1:00 She asks me about Unveiled: Jadewind led by Bai Lu and Wang Xingyue.

15:45 absoluteM opines about ancient detective dramas.

21:51 absoluteM gives a synopsis of what she’s seen so far in The Pursuit of Jade, which is about 4 episodes at the time of recording.

28:51 absoluteM mentions How Dare You?! with Cheng Lei and Wang Churan as a transmigration show that

30:50 I shift our focus to Vendetta of An which I’m currently watching.

38:43 absoluteM asks and I answer with a Korean show, Our Universe which has become oddly controversial. It’s a typical K drama in many respects and the online acrimony is unwarranted.

1:01:01 absoluteM talks about why she likes Honour.

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Hi everyone.

We jumped a lot in this episode because neither of us watched the same dramas. Thanks for being onboard and supporting what we’re doing here.

All the best for the new year. Xing Nian Kuai Le.

0:00 Introduction

0:37 absoluteM launches into a review of Undercover Miss Hong starring Park Shin-hye as a investigator/auditor in a checkered relationship with Go Kyung-po the CEO of the company she’s digging into.

7:41 We talk more generally about dramas

11:50 absoluteM talks about Honour, another legal drama featuring Lee Chung-ah as three friends who set up their own law firm to champion the forgotten people. I comment on the recent spate of stories.

18:49 I start yapping about Pro Bono and it’s protagonist. Afterwards absoluteM references his previous drama Oh My Ghost Clients — also another legal show.

30:36 Our focus shifts to The Judge Returns and then our discussion moves to Ji Sung who plays the titular character.

39:33 absoluteM starts talking about C dramas by first mentioning Bai Lu and Wang Xingyue’s newest release on Netflix, Unveiled: Jadewind. She’s watching another C drama spearheaded by Cheng Lei and Wang Churan, How Dare You?! — a piece of lighthearted fare about two book transmigrators trying to navigate the ancient past.

45:32 Our relationship with C dramas and dramas more generally.

57:37 We discuss recent dramas of Wang Xingyue and his career thus far.

1:01:26 absoluteM misses Lin Gengxin. Where has he gone??

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Happy New Year! We beckon another year of too many dramas.

0:00 Introduction and greetings

0:36 absoluteM talks about what she’s been watching on: Typhoon Family, Dynamite Kiss, Idol Eye, including Wallace Chung’s latest Second Chance Romance — widely thought to be something of a dud. 2:04 She mentions his 2022 drama Because of Love in passing.

4:27 Sniper Butterfly — a sleeper hit. A noona romance ie. an older woman romancing a young man. Neither of us have seen it yet.

5:48 I briefly mentioned what I watched on Viki before I went travelling last month. Taxi Driver 3 and Dear X.

6:49 What I watched on D+: The Manipulated, Tempest and Vigilante. I critique The Manipulated and then…

14:15 We get into a longer discussion of Typhoon Family which we both watched. We highlight the best and the negative aspects of the show.

31:23 I put Jung Kyung-ho’s Pro Bono on hold but will be getting back to it soon. I talk about what I like about it so far.

37:25 absoluteM launches into a review and outlines the plot of tropefest Dynamite Kiss, the rom com starring Jang Ki-yong and Ahn Eun-jin.

41:40 absoluteM watched body swap fantasy Moon River with Kang Tae-oh and Kim Se-jeong and recommends it. She goes on to praise 44:56 Idol Eye but not Cashero. Based on the plotline of Idol Eye, we talk about the darkside of fandom’s relationship with celebrities — trafficking gossip and salacious speculations on social media.

54:01 Taxi Driver 3 and comparing the various seasons. Then our attention shifts to Dear X and Kim You-jung’s performance.

59:56 I do a brief review of Tempest.

1:01:31 Tan Songyun and Liu Xueyi’s upcoming drama, Against the Current. Will Liu Xueyi hit the jackpot this time?

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0:00 Introduction — could be my last podcast for 2025.

1:09 Where we begin our conversation about Walking on Thin Ice, the underwatched crime K drama led by Lee Young-ae and Kim Young-kwan as partners in crime. This conversation does contain spoilers for the show. If you’re trying to avoid spoilers please go to my spoiler free review of the first half of the drama.

28:05 We talk about Kim Young-kwan and his career so far.

32:50 Our chat shifts to Typhoon Family. The historical backdrop of the Asian financial crisis and a brief synopsis. This heartwarming drama is spearheaded by Lee Jun-ho and Kim Min-ha as partners in a fledgling trading company.

51:03 What else is absoluteM watching… an “obscure” C drama; a K drama called Moon River (Kang Tae-o, Kim Se-jong)

52:39 Short dramas and another adaptation of Prisoner of Beauty.

58:13 What’s on the horizon? Dynamite Kiss, a rom com featuring Jang Ki-yong and An Eun-jin. Ji Chang-wook’s The Manipulated and Dear X which stars Kim Young-dae and Kim You-jung.

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Recorded on 27 September 2025 for October.

0:00 Introduction

0:28 absoluteM begins the conversation with a review of Queen Mantis starring Go Hyun-jung and Jang Do-yoon as a mother-son pairing in this police procedural.

8:31 absoluteM mentions Tempest with Ju Ji-hyun and Kang Dong-won as leads and Bon Appetit Your Majesty led by Im Yoo-na and Lee Chae-min as well-regarded dramas that are currently airing.

11:49 I do a quick review of Beyond the Bar with a focus on the characters.

17:07 I say a bit about SK police procedurals

18:31 absoluteM talks about her love for Kim Young-kwan and his latest drama Walking on Thin Ice which also features Lee Ae-young.

22:15 I make mention of Mobius which is the most recent Bai Jingting offering. Read my review here. Then absoluteM talks about Chen Jingke and his dramas: Watch Your Back and The Long Way Back. Then we go back to talking about Mobius.

36:14 We complain about the length of C dramas and the abolishing of the 40 episode cap. We make mention of The General and I that featured Wallace Chung and Angela Baby as an example of a show that dragged out the separation trope. I mention First Frost in that vein as well.

46:54 I review 12 Letters another recently completed C drama that is led by Zhou Yiran and Wang Yinglu.

54:49 I mention The Princess Royal briefly.

56:15 absoluteM talks about what she’s planning to watch. She brings up Shin’s Project which is led by Han Suk-kyu who plays a court arbitrator/mediator.

If you found this helpful, please share, like and leave a comment with your thoughts. Thank you as always for your ongoing interest and support.

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00:00 Greetings and absoluteM immediately launches into a review of Summit of Our Youth, a second chance story featuring Sun Zhenni and Chen Jingke.

5:19 We shift the conversation to The Legend of the Female General led by Zhou Ye and Cheng Lei. Be warned: I have nothing complimentary to say about the show. absoluteM mentions Cheng Lei’s other drama Shadow Love, currently airing. It also stars Song Yi.

26:17 absoluteM takes a turn to talk about Wang Xingyue’s latest, The Wanted Detective.

31:47 I am asked if I’m watching any K dramas and so the discussion leads to Beyond the Bar which features Lee Jin-uk and Jung Chae-yeon as the leads. I provide a synopsis of the set-up and run through the show’s themes.

43:34 We then move on to talk about the “new” 12 episode C drama Twelve Letters. A bleak existential story about young people struggling to overcome their limiting circumstances which don’t make things easy for anyone. Wang Yiliu and Zhou Yiran are good in their respective roles.

51:10 I’ve started on The Princess Royal which is led by Zhao Jinmai and Zhang Linghe. So far I have mixed feelings about this. We opine about Zhang Linghe and his projects.

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As always thank you for your support.

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I apologize for the sound quality. While I managed to boost the volume more generally I couldn’t get rid of the earlier distortions from absoluteM’s side of things. Thankfully the misbehaving audio righted itself after a time. Maybe it’s time to invest in a decent microphone.

Greetings and introduction: A brief summary of what we’ve been watching

1:49 The Princess’ Gambit — What in the world went wrong with his?

16:56 We switch our attention to shows absoluteM has been watching — A Dream within a Dream and the sequel to Flourished Peony, In the Name of Blossom. She talks about what worked for her and what didn’t.

39:15 The baton goes to me and I discuss a couple of dramas I’ve been watching on Viki: A Calm Day and Beautiful Days with You as well as Deep Affectionate Eyes.

48:48 absoluteM plugs Our Movie and Our Generation.

54:09 I ramble on about recent Netflix offerings, Wall to Wall and Trigger.

59:57 absoluteM is keen to look at My Lovely Journey and promotes Wang Xingyue’s latest, The Wanted Detective

1:04:40 What’s popular among the short C dramas at the moment.

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0:00 Greetings. What we’re watching and what we want to watch. We refer to The Legend of Zang Hai, The Princess’ Gambit, In the Name of Blossom, Mercy for None.

4:33 We begin our discussion of The Princess’ Gambit.

29:48 absoluteM asks about Legend of Zang Hai and I give a review.

41:26 absoluteM goes into what else she’s been watching: Perfect and Casual, The Best Thing, Our Movie, Head Over Heels

52:03 I ramble on about the latest in short C dramas

Thanks for everyone’s support. I apologize for the sound quality of the last podcast. Hopefully this one is better. Unfortunately I do everything myself and the results aren’t always the best. Will aim to do better.

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absoluteM and I come get together for a chat about the show. absoluteM kicks the conversation with her overall feelings about the show.

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0:34 Starting off with Resident Playbook that ended two weeks ago.

37:06 absoluteM raves about The Prisoner of Beauty, Liu Yuning’s latest. He’s paired with the talented Song Zu’er. I have since seen several episodes and am quite impressed. It’s been a while since a C drama has been able to grab my attention right out of the block.

53:08 absoluteM moves on to talk about another Liu Yuning drama, Eternal Brotherhood which also stars Yang Xuwen from Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty. A show that’s not romance

56:36 A quick mention of Li Xian’s new drama, A Love Never Lost.

58:53 A brief run down on what I’ve been watching — The First Frost, When Life Gives You Tangerines

1:01:47 Shows on our radar.

Thank you for your continued support.

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