Image: Google

Judul: Our Beloved Summer

Genre: Romance, drama, comedy

Sutradara: Kim Yoon-jin

Penulis naskah: Lee Na-eun

Pemain: Choi Woo-sik, Kim Da-mi, Kim Sung-cheol

Jumlah epsode: 16

Nonton di Netflix

Years after filming a viral documentary in high school, two bickering ex-lovers get pulled back in front of the camera and into each other's life. Choi Woong seems naive and a free-spirited man, but he wants to have something for the first time in his life. For that, he shows what he holds in his mind. Kook Yeon Soo aimed to become the top student at her school, but she is now an adult who lives fiercely, adapting to her reality.

Pada sesungguhnya, aku menonton Our Beloved Summer karena Mbak Dewi. Jujur, aku enggak inget berapa kali Mbakdew nyuruh aku nonton drakor satu ini. Masih dalam rangka mencari tontonan yang sweet dan hangat, maka pilihan untuk menonton OBS memang tidak salah.

Awal mula cerita

Berawal dari sebuah film dokumenter yang dibuat untuk menangkap kisah murid paling pintar di sekolah dan kebalikannya--iya, murid dengan peringkat paling akhir. Hal tersebut, mempertemukan Ung dan Yeon-su, dua orang dengan kepribadian yang saling berkebalikan. Akan tetapi, yang namanya drama romance, pada akhirnya mereka menemukan titik temu dan memutuskan untuk menjadi pasangan.

Kisah Ung dan Yeon-su di sini cukup manis menurutku. Sikap Yeon-su yang cuma mau memberikan catatannya ke Ung menunjukkan kalau Yeon-su betul-betul perhatian. Intinya sih, mereka jadi pasangan yang saling melengkapi. Sayangnya, sama seperti kisah drama lainnya, Yeon-su dan Ung akhirnya berpisah setelah menjalani hubungan selama lima tahun. Yang membuat lebih parah, mereka berpisahnya enggak baik-baik saja.

Lima tahun berlalu, Yeon-su berkarir di sebuah communication firm. Salah satu proyek besarnya melibatkan seorang seniman bernama Go-oh. Go-oh sendiri dikenal sebagai seniman misterius yang tidak membuka identitasnya ke publik. Karya yang ia hasilkan pun hanya fokus pada bangunan maupun pohon. Ia enggan memasukkan potret manusia ke dalamnya.

Awalnya, Yeon-su cukup kesulitan untuk bisa menemukan identitas Go-oh. Akan tetapi, akhirnya ia menyadari siapa sebetulnya Go-oh dan ingin rasanya menghilang saja dari muka bumi. Haruskah ia menghubungi mantan pacarnya itu kembali?

Hangat dan tidak memaksa

Sejujurnya, kisah dalam OBS ini memiliki banyak layer. Mulai dari kisah cinta antara Ung dan Yeon-su, latar belakang keluarga Ung dan Yeon-su, kehidupan Ji-ung--sahabat Ung yang sekarang menjadi sutradara film dokumenter, kisah Sol-i--sahabat Yeon-su, kisah NJ dan kehidupan selebritasnya, dan lainnya. Meskipun terkesan memiliki banyak layer, penulis berhasil menyampaikan masing-masing kisah dengan teratur. Jadi penonton tidak overwhelming. 

Lalu, kisah Ung dan Yeon-su sebagai kisah utama juga terasa masuk akal dan hangat. Tidak terlalu ada bagian yang dipaksakan. Oh iya, berhubung OBS juga memiliki unsur komedi, bagian komedi-nya masih bisa bikin ketawa. Meskipun begitu, bagian emosionalnya juga bikin sedih, sih. 

Menurutku, hampir semua layer kisah berhasil diberikan resolusi yang baik. Tidak terasa dipaksakan dan keputusan-keputusan yang diambil masing-masing tokoh menurutku cukup rasional. 

Tentunya, melalui OBS, kita bisa melihat lebih jauh kehidupan seorang seniman dan konsultan komunikasi. Dua bidang yang sekarang sedang naik daun. 

Kesimpulan

Setelah kemarin susah banget untuk move on dari Kieta Hatsukoi, akhirnya menonton episode OBS membuatku senyum-senyum sendiri. Kisah yang enggak terlalu bikin pusing tapi tetep bermakna, membuat OBS punya nilai plus di mataku. Well, aku memang lagi enggak pengen nonton drama yang berat, sih. Jadi, OBS memang pilihan yang tepat.

8 dari 10 bintang

Sincerely,

Ra

Image: KissManga

Original title: Kieta Hatsukoi

Genre: Romance, Comedy

Director: Shogo Kusano Tadaaki Horai

Scriptwriter: Aruko, Wataru Hinekure, Tsutomo Kuroiwa

Stars: Michieda Shunsuke, Ren Meguro, Riko Fukumoto, Jin Suzuki

Watching on Netflix

Aoki has a crush on Hashimoto, the girl in the seat next to him in class. But he despairs when he borrows her eraser and sees she’s written the name of another boy—Ida—on it. To make matters more confusing, Ida sees Aoki holding that very eraser and thinks Aoki has a crush on him!

Well, I think this is the first time I watch BL series. Once again, I got the recommendation from Mbak Dewi. My Love Mix-Up! is definitely a very cute and sweet BL story. You should watch it on your own.

The misunderstanding

One day, there is an exam on Aoki's class. Being a careless guy as he is, Aoki forget to bring his eraser. Then, he asked his best-friend, Aida--Akkun, but he only has one and scold Aoki for being forgetful. Luckily, there is Hashimoto, a girl who Aoki likes, that willing to lend her eraser to Aoki. Of course Aoki feel so happy and relieve about it. 

While waiting the questions sheet being circulated, Aoki noticed there's a written text on the eraser. It's "Ida ♡ "! Aoki was shocked because of it. So, does Hashimoto has a feeling for Ida, the guy who sits in front of Aoki? Then, the drama still linger on Aoki because when Ida gives the question sheet to Aoki, he accidentally make the eraser fall and ofc he saw the name. Yeah, that's the beginning of the misunderstanding that will lead to more sweet story later on.

The sweet couple

Ida is a typical a cool guy that calm and couldn't express his feeling freely. At the other side, Aoki has a really bright personality. He is also very honest. Seems like they will make a good couple, right?

In my opinion, My Love Mix-Up! has a really good storyline. There is no rush at all. Since I also read the manga, I understand about a lot of adjustments in the series. Ida is like an unreal guy that only exists on fiction life. I really appreciate his understanding towards Aoki. His attitude made me melting to some extent. I mean, when Aoki feel so helpless, Ida will assure him that Aoki could tell him everything. He also understands instantly when there is something that troubled Aoki.

Istg that they are a really sweet and cute couple. I don't think I have prepared my heart enough to watch their fluffy relationship.

Other than that, there's also the story of Hashimoto and Aida's relationship. Even tough there won't be much explained, but their relationship has a sweet side too. At least, that's what I know from the manga.

Conclusion

I just don't want the story to be over, please :( Well, the drama is end perfectly well... but I still thirst of their story. Therefore, I decided to also read the manga. Anyway, they are still cute there. Then, I should give props for the production crew because the appearance of each character is so similar to the manga character. Just love it. 

So 8.5 out of 10 stars from me.

Sincerely,

Ra

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl since January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

***

So, here is another attempt to write TTT again. Valentine Day is coming and I think I just wanna have fun with today's TTT. After visiting some of the blogs, I decided to choose a very light topic here, which is ten books with the word 'love' on its title. Well, I will dig out my Goodreads read-shelf of course to make my list.

1. My Love Mix-Up! - Wataru Hinekure

So, the original title for this manga is Kieta Hatsukoi. After watching the live-action on Netflix, I was really curious about the manga. After searching here and there, I end up reading it until the sixth volume. I really love how sweet Aoki-Ida's relationship is. 

2. A Love Letter From the Girls Who Feel Everything - Brittainy C. Cherry, Kandi Steiner

Accidentally found this book as my recommendation on Google. Tbh, I never expect anything but I think this book is pretty good. This book is containing two versions of letters, from B and K. Personally, I like B's letter more than K's. 

3. Love & Misadventure - Lang Leav

I really love this poetry book. I can relate to most of Lang Leav's writing. From this book, I decided to read more of Lang's work. 

4. Love Her Wild - Atticus

Well, in the mid of 2019, I have an urge temptation to read a lot of poetry books. Therefore, it won't be odd if you find Love Her Wild on my list today. 

5. Love & Gelato - Jenna Evans Welch

I read this book to complete one of the reading challenges that I have ever participated in. This YA book is cute even though at some point I couldn't help to despise Lina. Smh.

6. Love Theft - Prisca Primasari

One of my favourite books by Prisca Primasari. The modern Robin Hood group with musical elements on it? You sure have to read this novel 

7. Traces of Love - Clio Freya

The latest chapter of Fay's Adventure Series. After waiting for more than three years, finally, Clio Freya decided to release this volume. To be honest, from this book, we will know more about Andrew's plan for Fay's life. It's heartbreaking to know that Kent should let Fay go from him.

8. Dark Love - Ken Terate

Maybe this is the darkest teen lit that Ken Terate ever write. I couldn't guess the twist for this story. But yeah, the moral value that we can get from this book is very precious.

9. Summer Breeze: Cinta Nggak Pernah Salah - Orizuka

The title of this book can be translated into Summer Breeze: Love is Never Wrong. One of the books that made me fall in love to read. This book is also the first book that made me cry a lot.

10.  Dylan, I Love You! - Stephanie Zen

One of my all-time favourite teens lit books. The story is very light and the characters are well developed. I remember sometimes I reread this book a lot. 

So, that's all for my list today. Most of them are poetry and Indonesian book. Well, it's from TTT right we could share our reading list with each other?

Sincerely,

Ra

Image: Google

Judul asli: Kinou Nani Tabeta?

Penulis naskah: Adachi Naoko

Sutradara: Katagiri Kenji

Genre: Food, Comedy, Romance, Life

Jumlah episode: 12 episode

Pemain: Nishijima Hidetoshi, Uchino Seiyou, Makitar Sports, Kaji Meiko

Nonton di Netflix

Shiro and Kenji are a gay couple who live together. One is a hairdresser and is openly homosexual. The other is a lawyer and not open about his sexuality at work. When out together one day a customer walks up to them to ask Kenji whether Shiro is his gay lover. Given the direct question and how it is posed in public the couple are embarrassed and feel the awkward nature of the setting.

Berawal dari menonton Izakaya Bottakuri, munculah What did You Eat Yesterday? di rekomendasi. Mungkin karena sama-sama tentang masak-memasak, ya. Jadi bisa related. Menarik juga melihat kehidupan pasangan gay di tengah kota Tokyo.

Awal Kisah

Kakei Shiro (Nishijima Hidetoshi) adalah seorang pengacara dari sebuah firma hukum kecil. Ia sangat pandai memasa--dan sungguh, perhitungan banget kalau belanja. Tipikal mirip sama ibu-ibu ataupun anak rantau yang beneran menghitung pengeluaran per bulan. Dengan penampilannya yang sangat tegas dan tertutup, tidak ada yang tahu kalau sebenarnya dia tinggal bersama dengan pasangannya, Yabuki Kenji (Uchino Seiyou).

Kenji sendiri merupakan seorang penata rambut yang punya personality ceria. Dengan sikap Shiro yang cukup kaku dan tertutup, keberadaan Kenji membuat hidup Shiro jadi lebih berwarna. 

Episode yang singkat tapi hangat

Sesunguhnya, hampir semua episode dalam series ini punya jalan cerita yang sama. Satu episode biasanya menceritakan masalah yang dihaapi Shiro atau Kenji di pekerjaan mereka masing-masing---atau masalah keluarga, kemudian mereka pulang ke rumah, dan Shiro akan memasak untuk Kenji. Seperti yang kukatakan di awal, serial ini akan berisi masak-masakan. Jadi, buat yang suka masak, serial ini bisa memberikan inspirasi untuk yang ingin memasak ala jepang.

Salah satu maakan Shiro yang membuatku drooling adalah pasta yang dibuat. Pasta dengan bayam kalau tidak salah. Aku lupa episode berapa. Tapi yang pasti, waktu aku menonton aku jai lapar dan beneran pengin makan pasta.

Meskipun terlihat sederhana, serial ini cukup memberikan perspektif lain ketika melihat pasangan gay, I personally believe that now the worlds has changed and people can accept someone for what they are. Tapi memang enggak bisa dipungkiri kalau masih ada prejudice yang menempel di orang-orang yang enggak mau memahami pasangan LGBTQIA. Menurutku sih, film ini bisa ngegambarin keadaan tersebut dari sudut pandang Shiro dan Kenji. 

Kesimpulan

Mesikpun aku sudah mulai menonton serial ini dari 2021, aku baru betul-betul bisa menyelesaikannya sekarang. Simple, aku lagi banyak menyelinginya dengan menonton film maupun serial lain. 

Kalau tidak salah, ada tiga episode spesial tahun baru yang kemarin dirilis. Jadi, aku akan mencoba menonton lanjutannya.

7 dari 10 bintang.

Sincerely,

Ra

Image: shutterstock

Judul: Train to Busan

Genre: Action, horror, thriller

Tahun rilis: 2016

Durasi: 118 menit

Sutradara: Yeon Sang-ho

Penulis naskah: Pak Joo-Suk, Yeon Sang-ho

Pemain: Gong Yoo, Jung Yu-mi, Ma Doeng-sok, Kim Su-an

Nonton di Netflix

Sok-woo, a father with not much time for his daughter, Soo-ahn, are boarding the KTX, a fast train that shall bring them from Seoul to Busan. But during their journey, the apocalypse begins, and most of the earth's population become flesh craving zombies. While the KTX is shooting towards Busan, the passenger's fight for their families and lives against the zombies - and each other

Ketika aku sudah selesai menonton film zombie Korea seperti Kingdom, Happiness, dan juga All of Us are Dead, maka aku jadi merasa berdosa belum menonton Train to Busan. Sesungguhnya, alasannya cukup simple. Aku dulu enggak punya keberanian untuk menonton film zombie. Well, film horror dan thriller bukanlah jenis film yang kugemari. Maka dari itu, aku butuh waktu yang cukup panjang untuk memberanikan diri.

Awal mula cerita

Setelah Seok-woo (Gong Yoo) tidak tinggal bersama, Soo-an (Kim Su-an) memang tinggal bersama Seok-woo. Akan tetapi, pada hari ulang tahunnya kali ini, ia ingin bersama dengan ibunya. Di tengah kesibukan pekerjaannya, Seok-woo memutuskan untuk menemani Soo-an dalam perjalanannya menuju Busan menggunakan KTX.

Nyatanya, perjalanan menuju Busan tersebut menjadi perjalanan yang sangat mencekam karena hampir seluruh penumpang telah berubah menjadi zombie.

Tentang kereta penuh zombie

Satu hal yang menarik dari Train to Busan adalah latar ceritanya yang memang berfokus di KTX. Tidak ada latar lain yang sengaja di-explore di sini. Bukannya membuat bosan, malah menurutku hal tersebut jadi menarik.

Lalu, untuk zombie-nya sendiri, jujur aku kurang paham awal mula bagaimana mereka bisa menjadi zombie. Kenapa mbak-mbak yang terinfeksi pertama di kereta itu bisa terinfeksi? Dari mana asal-muasalnya? Jujur, aku bingung sumber zombie-nya dari mana. Apakah aku yang kurang memperhatikan? Anyway, di sini zombie-nya juga agak sedikit disgusting, meskipun tidak separah di All of Us are Dead. 

So far, karakter yang kusukai adalah Sang-hwa (Ma Dong-soek), setidaknya di sini dia berperan sebagai karakter yang paling logis dan rela berkorban. Ia juga berhati besar. Agak sedih juga sih waktu akhirnya dia terinfeksi.

Fokus pada kisah ayah dan anak

Tentu saja salah satu fokus cerita dari Train to Busan adalah bagaima hubungan antara Seok-woo dan putrinya. Dalam cerita ini, sosok Seok-wo yang sangat gila kerja berjuang mati-matian untuk melindungi putrinya selama zombie apocalypse. Berkali-kali momen menegangkan terjadi di sini. Yang paling berkesan menurutku adalah kejadian di Daegu kalau tidak salah, waktu ternyata seluruh tentara yang menjaga wilayah itu sudah menjadi zombia.

Lalu, kalau momen paling bikin hati patah tentu saja saat Seok-woo menyadari bahwa ia harus berpisah dengan Soo-an. Itu beneran cukup heart-breaking untuk ditonton.

Kesimpulan

Sebagai salah satu pioner dari film perzombian Korea, tentu saja Train to Busan punya charm-nya tersendiri. Jujur ceritanya cukup solid. Meskipun kembali llagi, aku belum paham asal-muasal zombie-nya dari mana. Akan tetapi, so far cukup menyenangkan untuk ditonton.

7 dari 10 bintang.

Sincerely, 

Ra

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl since January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

***

When was the last time I participated in Top Ten Tuesday? It was almost two years ago! Last year, I had difficulty writing my blog. I don't want to make any promises, but here's my TTT again. So, I'll try to look on my Goodreads read-shelf. Let's see what I can come up with for this prompt.

1. Escape from Mr Lemoncello's Library - Chris Grabenstein

Reading a middle-grade book has always excited me. As long as I remember, I accidentally found this book on my recommendation. Without much thinking, I choose this book for my reading. I hope I can continue to read all of the books from the series.

2. Kim Ji-Young Born in 1982 - Cho Nam-Joo

Kim Ji-Young's story is very relatable to me as an Asian Woman. I understand her condition and struggle. Not gonna lie, being a minority in this unfair society would be extremely difficult and Cho Nam-Joo has succeeded to describe the story of it. 

3. Giselle - Akiyoshi Rikako

I've always been a fan of Akiyoshi Rikako's work. Reading her work is an exception for me because I rarely read horror or mystery novels. Giselle is one of the notable works by Akiyoshi. This book to some extent gives me knowledge about ballet and its performance.

4. Aruna dan Lidahnya - Laksmi Pamuntjak

The English title for this book is The Birdwoman's Palate. To be honest, Aruna dan Lidahnya isn't my favourite book. But, in my opinion, no other book discusses Indonesia's culinary world as thoroughly as Aruna. As a result, I'm still interested in this book.

5. The Chronicles of Audy: O2 - Orizuka

When in college, The Chronicles of Audy has accompanied me. The story is very relatable as I and Audy have the same major. Then, O2 is the final book for The Chronicle of Audy series. So, this book will give a conclusion about Audy's life and story.

6. The Return of Sherlock Holmes - Arthur Conan Doyle

C'mon.. who won't recognized this book? After the fall of the Reichenbach, this book gives us a surprise when Holmes is actually still alive. I just love the way Doyle execute the return of the great detective. 

7. Cinder - Marissa Meyer

One of my favourite retelling fairy tales. I think, The Lunar Chronicles is amazing.  I still remember that I finished all of the series when I have an exam in college. Lol. Lucky me I still can do my exam well.

8. Harry Potter - J.K. Rowling

I can't not to mention Harry Potter for this list. Well, without Harry Potter, I don't think I will fall in love with fantasy movies or any middle-grade book.

9. Detective Conan (Case Closed) - Aoyama Gosho

Sorry for bringing manga on this list. I have to be honest, Detective Conan is my all-time favourite manga. Starting from there, I can start to read more about detective stories. Without Conan, I won't know about Arthur Conan Doyle or Agatha Christie's work. 

10. Angel's Heart - Luna Torashyngu

Angel's Heart is a teen lit Indonesian novel. I have to mention this book on this list because it's so memorable for me. When I got my holiday before entering middle school, I read a lot of novels and Angel's Heart is the first book that made me cry. Well, when I read it ten years later, it still gives some emotions to me. It gives me a lot of nostalgic feelings. 

Yaps, that's for today's TTT. It's glad to be back. Recalling my memories about books that I've ever read is always fascinating. So, what is the book that made it to your list today?

Sincerely,

Ra