The 2020 OCN drama Search (써치) is a thrilling mystery that packs a lot into its ten episodes. The fast-paced story and great cast leaves you both satisfied and wanting much more.
The 2020 JTBC drama 18 Again (18 어게인) is an all-around fun and heartwarming series depicting relatable life lessons about family, friends, school and career. Though it loses a bit of steam towards the end, it is a wholly satisfying series that is powered by sincere performances and a positive overarching message.
Asterisk Digital Entertainment’s My Extraordinary is both groundbreaking and heartbreaking, as well as maybe a missed opportunity. For being the first BL series on Philippine broadcast television, it is a big step forward for more to come in the future. As a series, it is a heartbreaking, painful, but hopeful story that can be relatable to a Filipino audience. But it also falls short in some ways.
OCN, long the home of genre-bending and bold storytelling, premiered crime thriller Voice (보이스 ) in 2017. But my review is for the second and third seasons of the series. (I”ll have to go back and watch that original season in the future.)
OCN’s 2019 series Strangers from Hell (타인은 지옥이다 / Hell is Other People) is a psychological thriller to end all psychological thrillers. Ten fast-paced episodes explore the often-tumultuous depths of people’s minds and often-frightening depths of today’s society. It serves as a reminder about not ignoring those reaching out for help and how there may always be something lurking beneath an innocuous surface.
The 2018-2019 drama series My Strange Hero (복수가 돌아왔다) appears to try and bring a new take to a familiar theme and setting. But being unable to commit to ideas it offers up results in a talented cast being given material that lacks cohesion and weight to really leave a lasting impression.
The 2017 KBS drama Hit the Top (최고의 한방/The Best Hit) is a charming and fun slice-of-life look at youth at all ages. And the moments that help shape one’s self and one another.
That changed this week with the premiere of My Extraordinary on TV5. The AsterisK Digital Entertainment-produced series is the first original local BL drama to air on Philippine television. And for such a historic first, the series is so far able to rise to the occasion.
For a simple, thoroughly enjoyable romantic comedy, look no further than the 2016 series Something About 1 Percent (1%의 어떤 것). It isn’t groundbreaking nor does it push the envelope, and that’s perfectly fine. The Ha Seok Jin/Jeon So Min-starrer is a classic Korean romcom. It knows exactly what it is, what it wants to be and excels at it.
TV5 heralded its return to original local entertainment programming with the premieres of the APT Entertainment-produced game shows Fill In The Bank and Bawal Na Game Show. While neither show is going to drive a significant amount of new or returning viewers to TV5, they are both simple and accessible fresh programs during a time when such content is at a premium.