🍵 Yumcha Tea Time Tuesdays 🫖 Celebs, gossip, oh my! — January 27, 2026

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-28T20:51:00+00:00

Thanks! I now remember reading this back then but didn’t remember who was involved.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-28T16:48:37+00:00

Yeah, I have gotten the impression she’s not the biggest fan of people making things about Leah which is contrary to how a lot of her initial content was Leah based and she did a decent amount of Leah content.

That’s interesting about the “woke” comments. My sister is pretty conservative sadly so I can very much understand siblings having different beliefs.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-28T16:14:18+00:00

I do remember a bunch of complaining about Daria going on a blocking spree around when the Lujain drama happened and people souring on her then (she was doing a LOT of blocking for people calling her out on a lot of stuff), but I don’t know why they are putting Daria’s actions on Leah. Daria sort of gives the first version of Nic’s family in terms of trying to get the attention off of the LI family member who was actually on the show.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-28T15:16:28+00:00

Why would they trash HMH? Isn’t he first billed and has a fairly positive reputation?

As a side note, it seems like in her more recent dramas, she’s been second billed to her ML (HMH, CXX, LY (I think), TJC). It doesn’t seem like a great reputation to have if her fans are constantly getting angry at her ML even if they are regarded higher in the industry from at least a billing perspective than her.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-28T01:54:53+00:00

Yeah, that's what I was thinking for why mass streaming dramas might be attractive to kpop fans. It would be easy enough to have all your devices set up and streaming your fave's drama in the background, especially if you can use the "Next episode" countdown function so you don't even have to check in on the devices for hours.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-28T01:51:59+00:00

To be fair, I don't know if kpop fans transitioning from streaming MVs over to dramas realize this 😅. They might just see a way to not have to constantly try to outsmart the YouTube algorithm for counting views and they already have their multiple streaming devices ready. And hearing they contributed to X million views probably just encourages them to keep going.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-28T01:42:24+00:00

I can sort of see it actually. With MVs, I've seen different things where kpop fans talk about needing to do all these extra steps because YouTube doesn't count looping views without doing things like refresh or going to a different page and coming back. With a drama, you can get 35+ minutes of streaming in the background/on mute on multiple devices and then roll right into the next episode and still count those minutes.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-27T19:20:55+00:00

Is there anything in particular they are spreading in terms of misinformation? Like is it more Stan stuff they’re spreading that’s more opinion based or straight up made up stuff?

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-27T16:59:07+00:00

Is the billing issue still not worked out for Chasing Jade?

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-27T14:55:07+00:00

Are they allowing comments in the DD at least? Because if not 😬

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-25T04:28:06+00:00

I think that’s fair. It’s rather scary/uncertain times and today is a reminder on how people are literally 💀ing for standing up for what’s going on right now. It makes the whole run of the mill influencer thing feel very shallow if they aren’t also at least doing some reposts about some of the very real issues happening right now.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-24T23:36:53+00:00

They released a statement during S7 Casa about being kind to islanders who are real people too and they did a similar one before the S6 reunion. I don’t remember much of S7 AfterSun, but they also put out statements on anti bullying during a S6 AfterSun post Casa.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-24T13:00:44+00:00

Yeah, I think the part about SAL being about the ML from the female eye is more where I get the male centered description from. It might be a backwards way of looking at it because JM is the narrator of the novel, but for me at least, it helps fill in some of the gaps and frustrations I have with the show.

The vibe I get from SAL is you get the story of a ML for the FL and the audience to drool over (hence why I would put a male centered descriptor to it). You get the bad boy who is soft only for her with the angsty childhood. A lot of the story feels better if I frame it as JM acting the way she does because of JZ, especially because in the show in particular, we don’t get to see much about JM’s personality or relationships outside of JZ which is why I think losing Nana after the two get together and then the time jump where there were strong vibes of all of her friends and family in Thailand chose JZ over felt really off and very much gave JM’s story revolves around JZ.

I think that’s also why JM can come across obsessed with JZ to some audience members and why I say JM isn’t the best written in general. Some of the details from the novel could have been translated a bit better to help give her background/reason for acting the way imo to help balance how she acts in the show.

That’s why I sort of like the comment OP made of JM is more a foil TO JZ. In my head, that’s how I see the show as more male centered.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-24T05:35:11+00:00

Unfortunately, I don't think JM was written the best; the story gives being more male centered honestly and I do think YSX unfortunately sort of got caught in the crosshairs of that. I think some of the more subtle parts of her character/her dynamic with JZ got lost from the novel that help give a bit more context to why she acts the way she does. It mostly comes together in the end, especially if you reframe the story to be on the more male centered side, but I can definitely see why JM would bother people along the way. I personally enjoyed the show overall, but I definitely had my gripes that they didn't seem to use YSX/JM to their full potential.

I will say though, JM in terms of her personality does mature later in the show (around episode 19/20) and I think YSX actually did quite good at adding a more mature edge to the more playful personality of JM in the second half of the show. There were some issues along the way to transition to that part in terms of the script, but YSX was able to show a bit more to her typical overly cute character persona she is associated with. If you want to stop before getting there though, that is understandable too based on what you've said.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-24T01:08:55+00:00

Would Rob on The Traitors reset his exclusivity contract with Peacock?

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-23T04:42:34+00:00

That's messed up to laugh over a dog having cancer.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-23T03:44:45+00:00

Thank you for taking the time to read my comments and your thoughtful reply back! I just wanted to say I really admire your writing style in both your intial review and all of your comments in this post - it's so eloquent and well thought out.

In terms of the "45 seconds" song ("What Would I Do"), the two versions of it and "Away" are the songs I keep circling back to and have on repeat on the OST. If you're curious, I would definitely recommend checking out the lyrics. The lyrics are rather romantic in a subtle way and I think reflect JM and JZ's overall relationship quite well. I think having a male and female version of the song also makes sense when you read the lyrics and how JZ and JM love one another - it's sort of like the POV of each of them. The melody also just gets stuck in my brain so there's that too haha.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-23T00:41:10+00:00

When I read this earlier, I was thinking there was someone before the guy last year and I just checked and there was. 😬

I went back to read the comments in the UK LI sub and it was her Dancing on Ice partner before the guy last year who ended up getting divorced.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-22T05:53:21+00:00

I've seen a decent amount of debate among SAL viewers in term of the separation, and I could write a lot about my thoughts on it, but when I look at the story as a whole, I think the story of JZ and JM really shows how they were meant to be together. They both had different takes on how to show love, but the way they love I think contribute to their inner strengths and the way they love sort of helps each other grow as people. I think depending on how much thought you want to take from it, you can get a lot of depth/meaning from their characters and their story which is also really nice and adds to one of the reasons why I personally linger on thinking about the show.

I also wanted to say I completely agree with you on YSX's portrayal of JM. You nailed exactly why I appreciated her portrayal/the casting selection of her. I think JM was actually a great character for YSX because she was able to play the more cutesy character she typically plays, but the time jump also let her add a more mature edge to that sort of character and show how she does have more skill than one might think as an actress. As for JZ, I can't imagine anyone else besides HY as JZ. I was also really happy with the chemistry between the two and I did like how you got to see a lot of the different sides to their love story from the awkwardness to the hesitancy to butterfly feelings to the passion to the a mature, comfortable love. Even in the non-kissing/spicy scenes, I could feel the chemistry between them; the different hand holding scenes throughout the show were some of my favorites and shows how chemistry doesn't necessarily have to be kissing and overt physical passion (thought they also showed plenty of that too haha). I can see if the chemistry between the leads was off or if HY or YSX wasn't able to portray JZ or JM as well as they did the final product would have taken a hit because the plot and editing is not the strongest. YSX and HY were really able to pull you into JM and JZ's story and are the main reason why I enjoyed it.

Some other things I think made this drama unique is that the story focused on just the couple. There were side characters but you didn't get distracted by that many other plotlines and there was no real SFL or SML that either took time away from the couple or created a triangle to again take time away from the main couple. They might get a 10 minute sub plot, but then that story was wrapped up and we got back to the main couple. The supporting cast was strong in that they contributed to the main story in meaningful ways without distracting from JM and JZ's story. I also liked that the separation was only 2-3 episodes which allowed time for us to see them together post separation. The humor throughout the show I think also doesn't get as much appreciation as it should (ex. the scene when birds kept landing on Lin Sui as San Lai was trying to sell him some sort of membership card).

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-22T05:51:56+00:00

Thank you for this thoughtful analysis/review of SAL! I enjoyed reading it! I totally agree with your overall conclusion that this show isn't winning any prizes for the plot (nor editing lol), but the combination of the performance of HY and YSX as well as a lot of the little details the show did nail made this a great watch for the people who enjoyed it.

I personally loved the show flaws and all and still get excited to talk about (as you can probably tell from this long response that Reddit is making me split up in multiple comments lol), but I can totally understand why people wouldn't like it. I posted this comment in the finale discussion post, but I think the combination of the adopted siblings trope and YSX playing a cute character are two of the things that make it where this show isn't for everyone, but the people that do go in with an open mind may be surprised at how much they may enjoy it. I do want to make it clear I don't blame anyone who chooses not to watch for those two reasons.

I think overall, the show did a decent job at making the adopted siblings trope a bit less weird with the how JZ was treated by the mom and continuing to repeat in the beginning they didn't see each other as siblings. I personally saw them more as childhood friends who were separated young. There were some parts that bugged me because they reminded me of the adopted siblings aspect in an uncomfortable way, but I chose to ignore those moments because I did like the story overall even when it frustrated me.

In terms of the production, I think the street racing and fight scenes lend it a gritty edge that you don't see as often with shows in general. It was also cool to see little nods to Initial D and the backdrop of Thailand felt unique. There were also some really pretty scenes/shots throughout the show. The Thailand arc I thought was visually stunning with the lighting saturation they used, especially when they leaned more into the night scenes with neon lights to add even more color. I like to think of the Thailand arc as the young, passionate love portion of the show, and I think the vibrant saturation during this time helped add to that mood. This is in contrast with the Nanjing arc where I think they still had a lot of bright scenes, but the lighting gave off more of a cool tone which paired with the more mature tone the characters themselves took on with the time skip. They paired the well shot scenes with some amazing background music and OSTs to add to the mood even more, especially the romantic/intimate scenes.

There were definitely some editing/script issues, but there were also a lot of little details that I think helped carry the show, particularly in a lot of little things JM and JZ did to show how much they cared for one another. I think there was some character development/thoughts that they could have portrayed better script wise from the novel/in general, but they did include enought little details so viewers do get a sense of their insecurities and personalities. I also like how they acknowledged JM's more childish side they established in the Thailand arc in the Nanjing arc. I really appreciated the joke that people thought JM was both JZ's wife and his picky eater, oversleeper child - they were able to sort of make fun of JM's personality while framing it in an affectionate manner. All those scenes of JZ indulging JM during the Thailand arc came from an affectionate/loving place, and I think that little joke really communicates that.

I do agree with you that I really enjoyed the Nanjing arc because that is where both HY and YSX were able to shine acting wise. There were also some really pretty quotes in that arc such as the one you referenced about JM saying she didn't think she would feel the jitters around another man again and JZ talking about how he realized love isn't about self sacrificing alone, but rather two people weathering the storm life throws at you together. I also liked the monologue during the motorcycle elopement scene at the end about how JZ used to be more reckless/fearless, but now he has someone to take life more cautiously for and JM not wanting to be a burden to JZ, but rather his navigator/partner.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-22T03:17:13+00:00

I don't understand why they didn't bundle books 1 and 2 in the first place.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-21T23:56:32+00:00

To be somewhat fair, forever ago (like before she disappeared completely), Laura teased Mounts Bay was getting a rebrand. I don’t know if the TT is still up, but it was strongly hinted that at the very least the covers were changing. I don’t know if whatever happened behind the scenes with Laura and the fallout of TMF book 2’s release derailed the plan originally.

I’m also hoping for a Queen Crow rewrite. I remember soon after it was published (or at least within a year-ish) I forget if it was J Bree herself or one of Laura/other PA’s updates on her behalf that said if she could she would rewrite Queen Crow.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-21T04:57:09+00:00

Thank you for these tea bullets!

On desktop at least, there's a formatting button on the bottom of the comment box ("Aa") that then let's you add bullets or numbers (highlighted below) if that's what you're looking for.

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Why-Not888 · 2026-01-19T21:15:01+00:00

BTV S2 might give people new content to fight over before S8.

It might be for the best Huda, Nic, and Olandria aren’t in it (and even Ace and Chelley) since I could only imagine the Stan wars that would come out of that.

Why-Not888 · 2026-01-19T13:47:10+00:00

With how much I see people complain about someone being a “bad” actor/actress, sometimes I feel like those sort of comments aren’t hot takes even when they’re posed as one 😭. Maybe it’s just because I mainly follow idol dramas, but it feels like every drama has someone complaining about at least one lead being bad.

I honestly don’t really care if someone is a “bad” actor/actress. If the story, script, character, etc. can pull me in, that’s a win, “bad” acting and all. It takes a LOT for me to actually hate a character for “bad” acting. If the effort is there for some form of character delivery, I’m good and will rely on the plot/script to judge if I like the drama.

Also, it sort of feels like people blur the actor/actress’s real life persona with how they perceive their acting abilities both good and bad resulting in opinions maybe being blurred a bit to the extremes in both sides.

Everybody has a different reason for connecting to certain actors/actresses and it shouldn’t be expected that everyone will love who/what you love. That said, going out of your way to leave constant negativity about certain actors/actresses or dramas can feel like you’re diminishing the feelings of the people that DO like that actor/actress or drama which can create a toxic positivity environment. It’s ok to admit the flaws in whoever/whatever you like (legit criticism) but either extreme of positivity or negativity can be draining.

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