Do you hear that?
It’s the giant sucking sound of “The Prisoner of Beauty” drawing my attention from other shows this month. Blame @agdr03 for recommending this 36-episode cdrama.
A brief note on the cinematography because I failed to mention this in my First Impressions.
Notice the use of colors in the opening scenes of Episode 1?
Both main leads are bathed in orange light but the contrast is perceptible. The male lead is cloaked in black hood (like an avenging angel) and the orange light is from a burning building. He’s the one who had lit it on fire. He’s walking away with a concealed smirk because his mission is accomplished.
In comparison, the female lead is dressed in bright white (like a ministering angel before her supine grandfather) with her skirt making a frilly puddle around her. The orange glow appears to be from the fading daylight, suggesting that her elderly grandfather’s earthly life is about to end. She sits beside him waiting for his last instructions.
The color and images are meant to convey that these two are yin-yang of each other. Different but complementary.
Update on the programs I was watching in May:
I still have “Heavenly Ever After” (one more episode to go) and “The Haunted Palace” (where was I??) to finish.
I already downloaded “Good Boys” starring Park BoGum on my Amazon Prime. Is this available on Netflix for you, @nrllee?
I still have my eye on “Our Written Seoul” starring Park BoYoung and Park JinYoung but I simply don’t have time to fit it in my schedule.
I almost binge-watched “Dear Hongrang” for Lee JaeWook. But the show became too sinister for me, and I wasn’t in the mood for that. Besides, the female lead Jo BoAh doesn’t appeal to me.
As for “Tastefully Yours,” I’ll reserve this for later. I’ve my fill of cocky-rich-boy-meets-sassy-broke-girl trope.
With all these pending dramas, I can add only one more this month.
1. First Night With the Duke
The title made me wince but I’m checking this kdrama out to see if it’s a spoof of that steamy Bridgerton series written by Julia Quinn, and adapted on Netflix.
Write-up from soompi:
“The First Night with the Duke” is a fantasy romance drama about an ordinary college student whose soul is transported into a minor character in a romance novel, Cha Sun Chaek (Girls’ Generation’s Seohyun). After waking up in the world of the novel, she ends up spending the night with the obsessive male lead, Yi Beon (2PM’s Taecyeon).
The story ignites when Yi Beon, a cold and calculating male lead, becomes obsessed after their first night together. Cha Sun Chaek, possessed by the real-life college student K, finds herself caught in an unpredictable love story. As their romance unfolds, viewers are drawn into the complex web of relationships within the novel’s world.
Source: soompi
Cast: Ok Taekyeon (of the boy band 2PM) and SeoHyun (of the girl group Girls’ Generation)
Episodes: 12
Start Date: Wednesday, June 11
Airs on Wednesdays and Thursdays
Where to Watch it: Viki
Network: KBS2
What about you? What are you watching this month?
Good morning, @packmule3 and All.
Oh, First Night with the Duke does indeed sound like a Harlequin-type romance, doesn’t it? But I rather like Ok Taecyeon – to me he is funny in comedies and such a villain in dramas. His chat show interview about his NYC audition experience is good.
I tried Tastefully Yours and just couldn’t get into it, despite decent reviews and my appreciation of the actors. I thought Love in the Kitchen did it first and better. Am continuing with Haunted Palace and will check out Good Boys.
I would like a change of pace and I will investigate some J-doramas with that in mind.
@Fern,
I don’t mind watching Taecyeon in comedies at all because he’s a great ham actor. But I don’t think he suits melodramas like the other actor-idols, Park Jinwoo (who’s currently in “Our Unwritten Seoul”) and Yim Siwan. It’s because Taek tends to do stock mannerisms (e.g., clench fist for anger, stick out his jaw for aggression) and be a bit theatrical in emotional scenes. His eyes aren’t as expressive as Park Jinwoo’s. 👀
I like him anyway because he’s a good sport and doesn’t mind laughing at himself.
I also enjoyed the chat interview about his n y c interview. So interesting how that happened and how he tells the story.
I also could not get into taste for the yours, despite really liking KHN.
@monmor,
So it wasn’t just me who couldn’t relate with “Tastefully Yours.” 😂 I like Kang HaNeul fine but his role here didn’t call out to me.
@Fern,
There was this jdrama whose plot amused me when its ad popped up on YouTube, but I don’t know where to find the whole 6 episodes. iIt’s called…
Wait a sec, the title is long,
“Shiawase Kanako no Koroshiya Seikatsu”
Or translated as
“Happy Kanako’s Killer Life”
It’s about this assassin-to-be who’s great at her job because she’s invisible to the world. I mean, figuratively invisible 🫥. Nobody notices her and her imaginary friends.
It’s dark humor.
@pm3 I did think KHN’s Acting Was good In tastefully, yours, but it was the character that did not appeal to me and a character We have seen so many times before. Perhaps the script will do something different with him?
I am watching “The Haunted Palace” and “Dear Hongrang”. I am interested in “Our Unwritten Seoul”.
@packmule, thank you for the recommendation Happy Kanako’s Killer Life. I’ll have a look for it. Later in July, Netflix will have a dorama starring Satoh Takeru.
I forgot to mention that I have started “Our Unwritten Seoul” because of the leads.
Happily enjoying final episodes of PoB, Haunted Palace and Tastefully Yours.
TY is worth a second look, even tho the slowfood vs corporate non-ethics is old, even so, there is always a chance to do it better, in my opinion perfectly
The trend lately is girls with egos and guys with complications and I love the FL lead here. She knows what she wants and doesnt freeze or wriggle around wagging her tail when the ML looks her in the eyes. Not a rich guy-plucky poor woman trope.
Really excellent production values. KHN gets a chance to show off his totally stage-driven comic acting — he uses all parts of his body in pratfalls, sudden too-late revelations etc.
Our Unwritten Seoul is still really excellent (4 eps into it), but in the same groove, familiar tropes executed very well. Leads are doing brilliantly so far.
For fluffy romance addicts, there is a modern Cdrama at 24 eps of 45 mins, which only = 18hrs of watch time. The ost is addictive and heart-lifting. Be Passionately in Love (15 eps into it) is more “passionate Youth Build A Better Future” so fans of what was a very steamy novel have dissed it.
Recent trend in cdrama is to slide kdrama sideways — so BPIL has a skittish spoiled FL and lots of misunderstandings. I like it, even though she is a bit confused abt her own feelings I see a very old-fashioned girl looking for a lifelong love beneath all the nonsense.
Otherwise no romance attracts me on viki or netflix so waiting hopefully for future shows. Today may be the first 90 degree day in the Northeast US so I plan to rewatch Jirisan, oh those misty green mountain ranges…
@packmule3 you mentioned last month that you had signed up for VIP membership with IQIYI to watch “Best Thing”. So did I, but found the show too bland and FFD most of it. Not even close to LoveO2O IMHO.
But since you have a sub to IQIYI, you might want to check out “Story of Kunning Palace” with the same ML as “Best Thing” but which I think is as good as “The Prisoner of Beauty“. The last episode of Kunning Palace is one of the best I’ve seen in a cDrama that completes the arc of the story very well.
I forgot to add that part of the reason I wanted to watch “The Best Thing” was to see if the ML’s (Zhang Ling He) kissing style was the same as in Kunning Palace, which I can only describe as “devouring”. Sadly it was not!
@Rebecca – I second your enthusiasm for Kunning Palace – a really engaging show.
Thanks, @Rebecca.
How long is the “Story of Kunning Palace?” I think that’s my deciding factor for now. 🙂
Yes, I don’t know what to do with my IQIYI subscription. I haven’t used it in over a month.
I reached Ep 4 of “Best Thing” but I found the girl too wishy-washy. I get that it’s hard to break up a long-term relationship but I can’t help wondering whether the ML is just a rebound lover/boyfriend or not.
Plus, I find the doctor-patient relationship unethical.
I don’t usually like the time-leap tropes in my dramas, but in this case, I think it’s better that the leads stop seeing each other professionally and romantically for a while, then re-start a relationship when a) she’s totally over her college sweetheart and b) no longer needing medical treatment from him.
@Packmule3, I also have a VIP subscription to iQIYI and can go for months without being drawn into shows it streams, then along will come something not available elsewhere, and I’m happy to keep the subscription. The Cdrama I completed most recently (in May) on iQIYI was Melody of Golden Age. I gave it an 8.0 rating on MDL: good enough to watch to the end, but not outstanding. I was excited to see that the FL of Melody of Golden Age, Ancy Deng (Deng Enxi), had a supporting role in one of the movies I saw, and liked, at the Seattle International Film Festival.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luz_(2025_film)
I only have a couple of weeks in June before I head off to Europe, so the shows I watch may be dictated by what I can download onto my tablet before I go. I have no trouble downloading shows on Netflix, iQIYI, and Prime Video, but have never been successful using Viki’s purported download feature.
I’m currently watching The Prisoner of Beauty (two episodes remaining) and Heavenly Ever After. I’m in Episode 7 of HEA and finding the show entertaining, although I have to not cluck my tongue at its jumble of beliefs (leaning heavily into karma, with sprinkles of Christian faith and practice, and a dash of Confucianism). There are many top-tier actors in HEA. I’m especially taken by Cheon Ho Jin in the dual roles of the President of the Heavenly Centre and King Yeomra in Hell.
The other thing that excited me when watching the 2025 film LUZ at the Seattle International Film Festival was recognizing scenery–particularly the monorails–in Chongqing, which is where the Cdrama First Frost partly takes place.
@packmule3
“Story of Kunning Palace” is 38 episodes… compared with 36 for “The Prisoner of Beauty” (45 min episodes).
@Welmaris
I signed up for the IQIYI sub about six months ago to watch Kunning Palace, but once I completed the show, I cancelled it. I reactivated my sub recently to watch Best Thing, and I’ll probably cancel it again if I don’t find anything else I want to watch on it for now. Cancelling the sub just stops the monthly payment, not the account. So it’s easy to reactivate it as and when you want. The cost of a one month sub is less than renting a movie on Prime, so I think of the one month sub as renting a series. You just have to remember to cancel as soon as you finish the show.
@packmule3 Good Boy is not available on Netflix for me 😕, had to watch it elsewhere. I stalled in Ep2. The comedic segments in it is just a bit too over the top for me? I get that they are trying to achieve the whole Avengers look to it but when Marvel did comedy it was classy and clever? Good Boy humour borders on cheesy and cringey so I bailed. I am watching Our Unwritten Seoul and I agree with @ibisfeather, it’s well written and acted and I am enjoying it. Watched 4eps so far and will keep going.
@PM3 I agree with you on the relationship in Best Thing being unethical. I read up on Chinese attitudes towards this. Although it is seen as undesireable it does not seem to be seen as malpractice the way it is in North America.
In general there are so many asian dramas I dont watch from the getgo because of those ethical concerns. Is it titillating to wonder if siblings or half-siblings develop feelings for each other? Not in any normal way for me. In the west that is a topic for tragedy not romance. For me this trope remains one of the topics I have tucked in the back of my mind to figure out someday.
Is the boss romancing his underlings, or said underlings in reverse ditto, saucy, bold and transgressive? Nope, not for me at all. The only thing I remember with pleasure from business proposal is that when said employee knocks her boss down behind some patio bushes, he does the hand-clench at that point reserved for female characters in romedy, indicating the suppression of powerful usually negative emotions, but also for physical attraction.
sorry to rant. I do my own choosing of shows without reading reviews so these characteristics loom large in it. When I get stuck into watching a show like that it is pretty upsetting. Hated Hongrang, Hated BP.
@welmaris @ packmule @kate and others
About One and Only and Forever and Ever
May contain SPOILERS
I found it difficult to get into One and Only-a rather slow start to the drama. So I watched Forever and Ever first then One and Only(the latter a favourite rewatch now).
I ended up preferring One and Only. I would have enjoyed Forever and Ever more, I think, if they had kept the same actors for more roles.
At the time I took a quick look at the novel and realized how dividing the drama the way they did was about censorship. In Forever and Ever there is nothing explicit about her remembering the details of the first life or communicationg that to him. The scenes at the beginning told us she had emotional memory but that was never developed. Those kind of memories and scenes are the best for me in a transmigration/reincarnation drama and they were lacking here.
I very much enjoyed Allen Ren’s transformation from a self assured military general to an anxious chemistry professor, both characters with a view of changing the world in an era appropriate way.
I much preferred the general’s self control in their relationship to the professor’s avoidance of s****l engagement. As the viewer I experienced the frustration watching the sequel that the couple experienced in One and Only. Hahaha.
It has taken me a number of shows to recover from what ZWY did to Allen Ren and be able to see ZWY as a romantic hero!
@kate I wonder how you rate the wedding in One and Only?
@Monmor,
Both shows favourites with me but I watched them too long ago to remember. Also, From dim recollection I don’t think there was a wedding in ‘One and Only’. Or are you jesting with me because of the storyline? I have no memory of that part of ‘Forever and Ever’ either… I need a ‘Forever and Ever’ rewatch later this year.
SPOILER
@kate It was a rather sick jest. The wedding scene is her jumping from the parapet in her beautiful red dress with the contrasting snowfall.
I do not remember a wedding in F&E. Their is an equivalent scene of her falling from a balcony though.
@packmule the post is here using my computer. Perhaps problem at my end?
mianhayeo
I finished The Haunted Palace. I enjoyed it and I thought Kim Ji-hoon did a good job playing the King. ☺️
I’m not sure yet what to pick up on k and c dramas.
What episode are you now of POB, Queen? 😃
@Packmule3, @Fern, and @nrllee, I gave Good Boy a try last night, and although I like the lead actors, I’m dropping it because of the violence. I also didn’t think the show was successful in merging comedy with drama. The comedic bits seemed forced to me.
Dear Friends, I have been writing a lot lately. Being fair I have not completed any new Drama.
On the other hand, today June the 15th of 2025 id Father’s Day in my part of the World. Hope the Fathers in our families become happier and more successful!
@Welmaris I am glad I am not the only one who cringed at the comedy in Good Boy. The violence was over the top and I fast forwarded some of those scenes. I think I stopped at Ep2? Still watching Our Unwritten Seoul.
It’s been a while since I stopped by. Have been watching quite a bit the past few weeks.
Just finished “A Moment in Time” which was interesting with the unexpected parts if you don’t mind closing eyes to some glaring plot lines.
Also finished “Love in Pavillion” which is part of the larger story world called the Fox Spirit Matchmaker, i think. These two took me almost 2 months to finish. Phew!
Anyone watched “Always Home”? It’s a youth drama that isn’t cringey. Loved the natural joker boyish ML character.
I made it through Tastefully Yours and loved Resident Playlist.
Anyone watching Seven Relics of Ill Omen? Mystery drama with fight scenes that remind me of those in historical dramas.
I’m also watching this odd drama called The Lichi Road on iQiyi about an official given an impossible task of delivering fresh Lychee 2500km from the south to the north for the consort’s birthday. It’s a death penalty if he fails to do so. I’m curious how he will pull it off.
Enjoying Our Unwritten Soul and First Night with the Duke in the meantime! Gosh feels like I’m watching so many 😬 will get to prisoner of beauty soon….
The Lichi Road sounded good.
Happily finished the May starters: Tastefully Yours, tPob and tHP. What a great month!
Unhappily finished that cdrama “Be passionately…” –it ended up too preachy for me.
ongoing: the Duke, Unwritten S!
Since I only started watching in 2021, I do a lot of wayback trawling for pure and simple pleasures: Let Me Be Your Knight, 2021, Lee Jun Young — Must You Go, 2021, Lee Seung Hyub, Chani, very short — XX, cheating boyfriends get their due, 2021, short, Bae In Hyuk plus — Mission Possible, 2021, Kim Young Kwang, Lee Sun Bin. Just sharing, probably preaching to the choir. Thinking about lazy summertime watching.
@packmule3 – I found the drama you were looking for.
https://kisskh.co/Drama/Happy-Kanako-s-Killer-Life—Shiawase-Kanako-no-Koroshiya-Seikatsu?id=10371&q=true
Two chinese dramas starting now.
Dream within a dream with Liu Yuning today
part 2 of Flourished Peony on June 30 It has a different name.
Are you watching this? Is it any good, @monmor? I see Liu Yuning is on it, too.
I still have to finish Prisoner of Beauty. But I can’t remember where I left off. Oh dear….
Thanks a bunch, @angelwingssf! 😌
And just in time, too. I have this weekend plus next week off to catch up on dramas.
Howdy! Did you say you were at episode 19 of The Prisoner of Beauty last time? 😊
After The Haunted Palace, I’ve started Head Over Heels. It’s not as scary too but the shaman theme is there again but it’s funny as well. 😃
PS. The boys fave of Ben & Jerry’s is half baked. 😄
I am jealous, Head over Heels isnt available here (yet? viki and netflix gods?).
Getting panicky over the july kdrama drought due to squid game. Un.Seoul will finish tomorrow.
So I started the semi-trashy but visually intoxicating (echoes of fin de siecle, flat contrasting pure planes of color clearly outlined) The Princess’s Gambit.
I loved the real-life care and affection which grew between Qiao Man and Wei Shao, and the contrasting fairytale political action.
I love just as much PG’s right-off-the-bat over-the-top sensuality (nothing explicit and no choking, thank goodness). Several large and little violent attacks already. Mostly inside various boudoirs so far. Nothing is what it seems. No comedy yet.
Probably not a recommendation for packmule because the plot is over-explained. Nothing subtle except for the visual signals. Decadent as they are.
I personally will watch practically anything for a few episodes if the visuals, timing and music all coincide for an aesthetic thrill. It is my impression that your group is choosier.
However since I do not read reviews ahead of time I do spend more time trying stuff out, so it may be useful i drop my little notes along the way?
Hi @ibisfeather . I watched Head Over Heels on Amazon Prime courtesy of my sister’s account.
I’m into it now especially because the introduction is set and so we just wait if Gyeon-oo dies after 21 days. 😬
Head over heels is on Amazon Prime video here in the US.
😂 I enjoyed the first two episodes of Head Over Heels, @agdr03. Will open a thread for us.
Are you free to do a rewatch sometime this week (except Monday, I’ve to swing by the office)? I’m free this week. Any episode, any drama. Your call.
Ooohhh yes I’d love a thread for Head Over Heels please. 🥰 I thought it was interesting about people that walks upside down towards Sung-ah are all endangered and dying. 😬
Deal! ☺️ I’m free most mornings except Monday and Wednesday because I go to mass from 9am.
Hmm which drama do we watch? 🤔
@agdr03,
Is this Ben and Jerry with cookie dough or Oreos?
One of my favorite summer pastimes is visiting local ice cream parlors where I can order ice cream according to my choice of mix-ins. lol. That’s my generation version of bubble tea cafes where the Gen-Z like to hang out.
But I find that Ben and Jerry’s NY Superfudge is still my go-to flavor because it has all the ingredients I like without me having to rack my brains.
I also like Häagen-Dazs’ butter pecan flavor when I’m not in the mood for chocolate. And Magnolia taro flavor ice cream (the purple one) when I can find it at the local Asian supermarket. I think it’s a Filipino ice cream brand.
@packmule3, I loved butter pecan. 😭 There isn’t anything equal to it in the part of England where I live. It just has that bit of salt or something that makes it sort of addictive. We do have a lovely Devon Cream vanilla, certainly, but it seems a bit sad to be the person who orders vanilla when there are dozens of other flavours.
I saw the temps in the eastern U.S. I hope you can stay cool and have no black-outs.
After something @ibisfeather posted, I have started the animation Apothecary Diaries and found it strangely compelling, mostly because of the FL who is short, but the nerdy, laconic opposite of pixie-manic.
I loved it. cant wait for the second season. magic, hoho.
Ube (taro) Ice Cream is always a crowd pleaser. You won’t go wrong with that one especially if it’s by Magnolia. 🥰 My fave flavour from them is Double Dutch, vanilla ice cream with cashews, choc chip and marshmallows. 🤤 Otherwise it’s rocky road for me or anything with nuts. 😃
Yes, the Half Baked by Ben and Jerry’s is with choc chip cookie dough and fudge brownies. ☺️
What about an episode of The Prisoner of Beauty? ☺️
@Fern, I’m up to episode 47 Season 2 of The Apothecary Diaries and I’m sulking because that’s the end of that season? How long do I wait for Master Jinshi and Maomao to be together??? 😭
@packmule3 I have just watched the first episode of DwaD. Lots of meta. One comment was that watching A journey to Love should be a prerequisite. I think I will save my cdrama hours for the sequel to Flourished Peony which is supposed to start tomorrow and come back to DwaD.
My daughter offered to watch Kpop Demon Hunters with me. Not my usual fare. It was good enough and the music is doing very well.
@packmule3 DwaD could be very good but too soon for me to tell if it will hold up. It is OTT and frenetic in the first episode. So many references that one needs to be quick to catch it all. I prefer something more slowly paced. It is funny and has the potential to continue to be funny. I will definitely check it out again.
Let’s set the rewatch for tomorrow? Is this time good for you? 😃
I am having fun with Dream within a Dream…
Episodes 5 and 6 are especially silly and entertaining. I laughed out loud at the wonderfully OTT duel of wits between the FL and ML.
The show is an apt follow-up to the fun we had with tropes in Chinese dramas.
It is full of fun twists, snappy editing, a feisty heroine – they chose the right actress for this role and…Loads of improbably handsome actors – as our FL seeks answers to a mystery and finds herself in the heartland of ‘Moonshade’! They are also doing that fun thing of keeping her alive for random reasons – a storyline beloved of James Bond movies…
Oddly the opening and closing credit songs have that wistful quality I associate with straight dramas. Perhaps this is simply another in-joke with the audience. Or perhaps the whole thing will surprise me and morph into a different genre altogether!
30 years to the day when the Sampoong Department Store collapsed. Moment of silence.
and…Just Between Lovers/Rain or Shine still the best modern fusion drama ever, for me personally.
It gets me that Nam Da Reum and Park Si Eun are only listed as guest actors, when the time they spent trapped in the dark in the rubble as the younger versions of the leads is a vivid memory I have of the show.
That, and the quote from Im Chul Woo, “..Suffering, resentment and regrets are your strengths. With these strengths, somehow survive [this] ugly and frightening life.” Wow. Talk about processing pain and political despair.
@agdr03 –
Take heart! I am reading that July 4th is the final episode of The Apothecary Diaries Season 2 and that there will be an important reveal.
I am hoping so too. The most recent episode didn’t feel like the end of the season.
oops, it was the 29th.
I have watched just between lovers a few times. It is an excellent drama!
Are many on board to watch “in the name of the blossom”(flourished peony sequel)?
VIKI Tells me it starts tomorrow.
just opened it up!!!
for my favourite shows I savor the opening credits. It’s s little different this time, without a continual sweep acroass a single decorated screen and I dont like the music as much. But it is still fun to wonder which episodes are hinted at; in the previous show I always liked the little children playing which comes from the secret visits of the floral envoy to a sort of child refuge run by a friend.
I didnt like the summary of the previous show — it seemed confusing.
What a fussbudget I am being!
I still like it when they call each other darling in pretense, but they really enjoy it too.
Are many people catching up with flourished peony first? I am committed to being discreet.
The very first few episodes (i.e. in FP) are really good.
If I had known this was coming so quickly.I might have re-watched flourished peony. Now I think I’ll try to find a good review or recaps.
Dropped the Princess’ Gambit (cdrama fatigue, and the plot after it settled down was too familiar). Dipping into the Duke occ.
Now that Unwritten Seoul (superb) is over, I am hieing off to my b-genre world…
After watching DwaD(only on ep3), I do not think I will be able to watch a historical cdrama (with this type of plot)) with a straight face ever again.😁
I finished Our Unwritten Seoul. I thought the emotional moments were very well done. But I also had the feeling that the writer was trying too hard to arrive at the big emotional scenes. I would still recommend the drama though. My favorite characters were Strawberry Farmer and Ho Su’s mom.
I also rewatched Unlock My Boss. Liked it even better the second time around.
I am completely caught up in DwaD. Will get to In the Name of the Blossom after.
Recently rewatched FtLY and TY. Love both!
From my b-genre corner — Law and the City seems to have an unexpected romance in the works already — I guess we wouldnt want to waste Lee Jong Suk’s looks now, would we?. I like office shows, so I started this. The cinematography, not the shots but the general look of things is kind of old-fashioned and relaxing, yellowish like old photos.
I may not watch this yet, but I’m putting this here because some of us like Satoh Takeru and may be interested to know that this jdorama is coming (but there’s no info on how many episodes yet!)
The information below is copied from The Fangirl Verdict. (Thanks kfangurl!!)
YT Link to preview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZyFUM2rsrI&t=100s
Title: “Glass Heart”
Synopsis: Saijo Akane, a drummer who was ousted from her previous band just before her debut, is unexpectedly chosen by Fujitani Naoki, a reclusive and brilliant musician, to join his new band, TENBLANK. Together with band members Takaoka Sho and Sakamoto Kazushi, the band gains fame through Fujitani’s distinctive compositions and their electrifying performances. As TENBLANK rises to stardom, they face numerous challenges, and Akane’s journey from obscurity to stardom unfolds as Fujitani’s secrets emerge. Will the band withstand the storm, and where will Akane’s heart lead her?
Show is adapted from the novel “Glass Heart” (グラスハート) by Wakagi Mio (若木未生).
Airs: Jul 31, 2025 – ?
Original Network: Netflix
Starring: Satoh Takeru, Miyazaki Yu
oooh sounds good
I wish sometimes that the Japanese dramas would have english names.Because otherwise you have no idea what they are about based on the name. I do not particularly follow japanese dramas so thank you for the recommendation.
I think this is an actor I have seen before and like.
@MM, yes, I definitely like this actor. As for the J-pop, I’m not too sure! If I can find the time, I don’t mind trying this series. At least with jdoramas, they don’t go on for more than 9 or 10 episodes much of the time.
👍
@Growing Beautifully, thank you. I am looking forward to this dorama.
I am looking forward to this too.
@Kate thank you! 😘
I was very satisfied with the ending! It was funny and enough touchy feely too. 🥰
Hello, BoD friends! I’m still traveling in Europe, so my time available to watch Asian dramas is limited, but I’m finding the anime The Apothecary Diaries is just right for filling in time on planes and trains. Each episode is only 22 minutes. The artwork is stunningly beautiful in parts, juxtaposed with funny cartoonish drawings (for effect) in others. I’m finding the story delivery a bit choppy, but most times info presented that seems out of context will have context provided shortly after. It’s a cart-before-horse form of storytelling I’m not used to; I wonder if that’s typical of anime (which I rarely watch), manga (which I rarely read), or peculiar to this show. The Apothecary Diaries has adult humor, and I think double entendres (which I suspect because of characters’ over-the-top reactions) are not properly translated into English. But I think I get the gist.
There are 24 episodes of The Apothecary Diaries on Netflix. I noticed that in Episode 13, the look of the opening and closing credits changed significantly: new music, new artwork, montage scenes from episodes I hadn’t yet viewed. I’ve heard that the show continues beyond Episode 24, but not on Netflix. I wonder if it is released in groups in 12 episodes.
👋🏻 @Welmaris I hope Europe is giving you joy. ☺️
There’s 24 episodes of the second season of The Apothecary Diaries. I watched it on Crunchy Roll. I wonder if that’s it.
I hope Netflix will pick up the second season.
Hi Queen. How and where are you? 😃 I hope you’re ok.
It’s July already and I thought you were going to open a Head Over Heels thread for us.
I’m still enjoying the drama and I’m extra liking all the details of the different spells and how to get rid of it.
@agdr03 and @Fern and @Welmaris + others enjoying The Apothecary Diaries – apparently they have confirmed for Season Three. Not sure when it will be ready.
I gather there will be a big shift – I think by that they mean shift of location.
@agdr03, Glad you liked the final episode of season 2 btw – I had to laugh at the endless interruptions! But there was also a lot to look forward to and some good plot resolution.
@welmaris, i waited for months before apothecary diaries came to netflix in the usa, i think it ran only on the netflix asia list before that. i have watched 1&2, i misspoke, still waiting for season 3. I liked yr observations.
w/HoH, yall seem set.
W/0 a prime subscription, so I’ve a long-awaited Netflix anime starting on thurs., Leviathan.
Still loving In the Name of Blossom but the natives are restless, slow burn is one thing but a new ‘noble idiot’ move has stalled love again. after over 45 episodes!!!
I’m so sorry, @agdr03. I was looking forward to my time-off but an urgent matter needed my attention and had to fly out to California. Oh well. There’s never a dull day for me….
Am opening the thread now. Thank you for your patience! 🙂
What’s this Apothecary Diaries, @Kate??? A cdrama?
Howdy! 😃 No worries at all. I haven’t watched the current last 2 episodes of HOH.
I thought you might have been called in for work. I hope you can relax now. ☺️
@Packmule3, The Apothecary Diaries is an anime that several of us have been enjoying. Since I have watched few animes, I’m unfamiliar with stylistic conventions; I watch with an open mind, knowing that judging it by the standards of a live-action drama might lead me astray. I get a kick out of how juxtapositions of drawing style are part of the storytelling. Some of the backgrounds are lushly detailed, almost photorealistic. To convey heightened emotions, a character may be depicted in a simplified, cartoonish manner.
I found The Apothecary Diaries perfect to download onto my tablet for watching in transit. Each episode is about 22 minutes long.
I don’t know if you’ve already come and gone, but welcome to my home state. California is a big place, so you may not have been anywhere near my neck of the woods, but it’s fun to imagine brushing past you in a crowd. The only chance of that happening this trip would have been if you were at LAX the night of July 9, when I flew in from London. I haven’t budged from home since then. I’ve unpacked from my trip, and am staring at my piles of laundry, hoping to muster enthusiasm to deal with them. My own machines are much easier for me to use than what I encountered in Dublin and Amsterdam, but where’s the fun in that?
@Welmaris, for all their good qualities, European type washing machines pale in comparison to American types in terms of capacity and quick cleaning. But they don’t fit into our standard houses! 🤷♀️
@packmule3, I saw shorts of Apothecary Diaries on YouTube but ignored them until @ibisfeather mentioned it on BoD. I thought I wanted to see something different, and got hooked. The first series is on Netflix. A second series is out, not yet on Netflix but on a site called Crunchy Roll or something, or via payment on Amazon Prime, as I understand it.
Welcome home and I hope you are keeping cool and having a relaxing weekend.
Hi @Packmule,
Others have responded by now to your query re The Apothecary Diaries.
It is certainly twisty and turny enough to encourage discussion and analysis. Enjoyment does depend, of course, on whether you like anime shows. It’s a blend of a mysterious and haunting back story with some romantic comedy and intrigue. There is a feisty and quirky FL who responds in unusual ways to the challenges of life in the Imperial Court. The ML is unusually beautiful with his own fascinating back story. I think it is worth watching a couple of episodes on Netflix to see if you get hooked.
ps The Apothecary Diaries is a Japanese anime drama.
Anime isnt for everybody. But I look at it as a sketch, only the barest outlines of plot or even facial characteristics which, somehow, your mind fills in richly afterwards, or even during.
For some shows(the first half of my happy marriage, for ex.) I remember them as live action.
For most shows the weird little gasps etc, the frozen faces etched out only in blobs of color on closeup…and above all, in the old-fashioned stds, the awful obligatory little female lead with huge glassy quivering witness eyes — urgh.
But I love the Forest of Piano, the Blue Period, anything Studio Ghibli…basically with rich line drawing and detailed backgrounds, good music….
I only started watching to find out what the kids I taught were up to, & since i dont game, anime was the next best option. Now that it is all more and more intertwined, books/anime/liveaction-dramas-films/games/manga, some of the original YA impulse is a bit muddied.
I myself have always been into scifi and fantasy, so I just yesterday happily watched the leviathan, an anime from the YA trilogy books. Its texture reminds me of the more highbrow philip pullman’s YA trilogy (books) His Dark Materials, the first volume of which was the golden compass.
But I would not recommend it to anyone who did not share that same background.
I am trying to get my adult daughter who grew up through anime and Philip Pullman to watch my apothecary diaries with me. I will ask her again.
I discovered the philip pullman trilogy when my children were young. It was such a rich read for all of us.
On the Cdrama modern front I just started Our Generation with Zhang Linghe (2ML in LBFaD, he had more depth and talent than Wang He Di and is one of the upandcoming batch of handsomests)
As a fan of kdrama I am disposed to like a drama that devotes an entire first episode to an adorable group of children who represent the main leads (who will be in high school and beyond for the rest of the drama). Winsome and cute.
The grownup FL and the actors who portray the rest of the guy-gang look good too. 24eps x 45mins = 18 hrs. Not bad.
@Fern @ibisfeather @agdr93
Just a quick thank-you for bringing The Apothecary Diaries to my attention. It was fun! It’s only the third Anime I’ve watched. Loved the quirky FL. I discovered that both seasons are available on Prime (Crunchyroll channel ?!) in several languages, including dubbed German with English subtitles, so I used the opportunity to improve my German comprehension (and to not feel guilty binge watching, cuz I’m also doing something educational, y’know, like learning German 😉).
Also, Hatsukoi DOGs/Love is for Dogs has started, if you need a nice romance on Tuesdays. It is the very first TBS/Studio Dragon collaboration made in Japan — at least I think that is what the two announced their collaboration a month or so ago. It will be very interesting to see how they will combine the two different tv drama styles.
Its the Eldorado — a show which can succeed in both countries. If you remember Eye Love You and What Comes After Love, they were popular but I thought they had cringey moments.
2 episodes so far. Na In Woo as a mildly thuggish playboy chaebol.
@ibisfeather, Hatsukoi DOGS / Love Is for Dogs looks interesting. Thanks for the recommendation. I’ve put it on my watchlist. It may be awhile before I get to it, because I’m so far behind on my drama watching!
I almost.
Started Love is for dogs. I think I didn’t because I started in the name of blossom.