alternate_ Reviews

A Condition Called Love (2024– )

Sweet adolescent love

[10/10 · 2 May 2024]

One is a hopeless romantic, while the other doesn't really understand romance or love except for genuine kindness and treating others sincerely. These two oddballs create genuine heartfelt moments after they decide to give it a chance. Together, they bring to life endless expectations while navigating their first love. The honesty of the protagonists is refreshing and something that goes with the portrayal of romance in the current era. It is exactly what one expects to see in such meet-cute situations, without the manipulations and lies we see in non-school romances. The characters act their age and make the anime more like a funny, cute, slice-of-life drama.

The Legendary Life of Queen Lau (2022– )

Absolutely delightful

[10/10 · 21 March 2024]

Not only do the actors justify their characters, but the acting is fun to watch; the timing of the actors in romantic comedies needs to be absolutely on point for the viewers to enjoy the rhythm and intention of the storyline being relayed. The acting is adorable, and despite the story seemingly predictable on the surface, it does have an opening and denouement: the plot is not as it initially appears, the characters develop throughout the story, and the dialogues are believable despite the drama being period. It is a light-hearted rom-com questioning the debatable beauty standards and expectations of people in society, irrespective of place, culture, and time period.

Miraculous Brothers (2023– )

Great plot and narration

[10/10 · 5 October 2023]

It has been a while since a well-written supernatural mystery drama came to any platform. This drama has good plot with obvious underlying contradictions. It explores a lot of philosophical and moral dilemmas and conflicts in a new way. Whilst doing that it doesn't confuse the viewers with too many information at first and lets the story build on its own. The actors' deliverance, direction, narration, was all bang on. This is a fun, exciting watch that make the viewers keep guessing as to the characters' reactions to the many things that they come across over a period of time. Every scene is well-placed and paced unlike most mystery dramas. This is a good account on human nature that investigates the layers between the two extremities of good and bad.

My Lovely Liar (2023)

Sweet romance

[9/10 · 15 August 2023]

When I started watching this one after a recent deluge of rom-coms on OTT, I underestimated its simple plot-line about a woman able to tell liars. After following the initial 6 episodes I can't wait to watch how the drama unfolds and how the leads handle different situations pertaining their not-so-common lives (read: lies).

The story complicates with simple twists and unforeseen but predictable circumstances, presented in a charming and feel-good format. The scenes are as beautiful as the leads. This one is like an icing on top of all the rom-coms released this year, with believable and real characters, charming take on a love story about second chances. To keep the plot running, a hidden backdrop runs throughout, creating sufficient tension between all the characters.

The story actively deals with a few of the current concerns like that of mental health problems: why not to take them lightly, plagiarism in the music industry: how the more-established people exploit, underpay and mistreat ghost-writers and non-famous talented people.

It's a great blend of a sweet second-chance romance, good plot, mystery, and some good acting.

Marry My Dead Body (2022)

Super cute horror-comedy

[10/10 · 10 August 2023]

I loved how the movie comically and sometimes poignantly touches some of the issues that we observe around us: homophobia, gender inequality and its perception by the majority, to global warming. It will definitely make one at-least want to borderline think about the problems. It also depicts subtly how not to take one's family for granted despite issues. The leads go above and beyond to deliver their parts well and make them adorably believable. The rituals are icing to the wedding cake.

The movie will tug at your hearts and leave a sweet impression. The supernatural plot to the story only adds to the already charming and comic story-telling.

Thousand Years for You (2022)

Good plot

[10/10 · 19 June 2023]

The storyline is quite decent given a lot of revival wuxia/xianxia dramas. The magic sometimes seems like a lot (read: unpalatable; given how a human is capable of managing unrealistic magic effortlessly from a borrowed energy core), but the dialogues and plot somehow manages to balance that.

Some of the themes are quite refreshing to watch, like how most of the characters (even main protagonists) are neither all black or white, completely good or bad, but mostly grey and then they develop from the scratch, no matter which side they are on. That makes for a believable setting and relatable characters. I also loved that the antagonist isn't slighted at all in the show. A protagonist can only be as radiant as an antagonist is irradiant after all.

Definitely novel among other wuxia dramas.

See You in My 19th Life (2023)

Cute and feel-good romance

[10/10 · 17 June 2023]

Despite a number of tragedies in our cute and cool protagonists' lives, their practical and sometimes surreal approach to things sets them apart from other fictional couples, making them very real and relatable.

The approach to romance is old-school yet the setting in the modern world is pretty astute. Nothing seems out of the place or unbelievable despite the fantastical setting. In keeping with the (thankfully) recent trends in doing away with the damsel-in-distress romances, our female protagonist is a doer rather than a dreamer, not leaving things to destiny and taking control of what she hopes from her life (or at least the one she is on!). I also loved the subtle subtext that the soul doesn't have a set gender-identity.

Recommend this fresh-take in characters from different lifetimes!

Back from the Brink (2023)

Decent Romantic-Comedy

[10/10 · 12 May 2023]

Romantic-comedy in xianxia setting, with a good plot and decent acting. The series offers a light-hearted romance with a sense of adventure and themes of equality, friendship and looking beyond the already established prejudices of a world where the lives of spirits/non-humans is taken for granted by the mortals/humans. The nemesis of our male protagonist, a centuries-old dragon immortal is a well-trained and strong-willed female who is the head of one of the sects, willing to do anything to abide by her understanding of the world and love. The female lead is also depicted as rational, strong and independent, who leads the plot of story.

It's a light watch if you're not looking for some heavy drama and romance, like TTEOTM.

Luckiest Girl Alive (2022)

Cannot miss this one!

[10/10 · 21 November 2022]

What got me was how unapologetic this narrative was delivered through the lens of a seemingly has-it-all person with deep scars and traumas of surviving a double tragedy and fighting it out all throughout. It portrays the gender bias fluidly and how deeply ingrained it is in the society's collective conscious, how easy it is for the privileged gender and class to get away with almost anything if only for the time being. Despite coming out about the harrowing experiences by the survivors, most still question the credibility and doubt the intentions as if blaming the victim would make the troublesome realities disappear.

The writer has dealt with difficult realities with nuance and sarcasm making it a part of everyday reality and lived experiences of more people than would like to admit.

Dinner Mate (2020)

Thoughtful romance drama

[8/10 · 6 January 2022]

It's a fresh and innovative take on romance and relationships in current times. The drama also emphasises mental health issues and different ways that one can cope with the stigma and repercussions surrounding it. The note is upbeat even when something disconcerting happens, keeping the undertone of the drama in mind, which is light-hearted romance.

Taj Mahal 1989 (2020– )

Amazing show!

[10/10 · 14 February 2020]

One of the best content shows one can come across in this age where Bollywood is struggling with good content. The characters are amiable, relatable and oh-so-real. Unlike the trailer, it isn't just another boring take on love and sex but how these simple concepts transcends time and makes all of us look deeper into the current society. Even after 20 years the concerns and responsibilities of people in the Indian society have hardly changed.

The show brings refreshing take on the middle and low-class and one thing that still connects the millenials to that time is that our priorities still seem unchanged. A must watch!

Dosti... Yaariyan... Manmarziyan (2015)

Great show with amazing music!

[10/10 · 21 August 2019]

As the title says, its all about friendship and love. The storyline is a little slow at first, but it catches up pace after the revelation of the central plot. The character delineation of all the characters is the best part of the show and you will not realize when they have grown on you. Everything about the show was subtle, unique and once you grow fond of the characters you wouldn't want the show to end.

Yeh Un Dinon Ki Baat Hai (2017–2019)

Beautifully Created

[10/10 · 16 March 2018]

The setting, characters, the essence of that adolescent "first love" and it's complexities along with the hindrances created by virtue of the setting/era, the depth in the way these characters think and behave, is so relatable to the nostalgic 90's that it could be just about anyone's life. Its a drama which has a real and touching story to tell.

There have been many adolescent love stories depicting their age and time but this one just takes the cake as it does justice not only to that setting/era but also to the characters. No matter how typical they seem but the delineation of the characters of the protagonists shows several subtle layers in them. It's a delightful watch.