✒ Eun Ha-Won & Those Shoes Kickstart A Family Royale °good tween show°
Cinderella and the Four Knights is a show that I watched early on in my Asian programming addiction (a gripping addiction that has taken me quite by surprise). I wasn't happy with it at the time, but I can see now, after watching dozens more shows, that it is geared towards a younger audience. There are better shows out there, but CAT4K is a perfectly acceptable way for tweens and teens to spend some downtime.Eun Ha-Won is an outstanding role model. She is cheated by her stepmother, so no school. She is hustling jobs to save up and make something of her life. She meets Kang Heoyon-min, who rents her for the evening to pose as his date. He has his reasons. One thing leads to another and soon she's working and residing in the Kang household which consists of grandpa (He's loaded), 3 grandsons (They are like princes), and a collection of staff, including secretary Lee. This family is in a rut, but Eun Ha-Won will soon shake things up so much it will never be the same again.
The plot is cute and simple. Most problems are wrapped up in a tidy package relatively effortlessly. The romance is sweet. The acting is VG, and the art design and sets are good. They had the elements for a better show, which is why it's so popular, but they skated in the second half, and the final couple episodes were downright bad.
They also just hadda trot out an overused Kdrama trope: WKEWY, or, We Knew Eachother When (We Were) Young (The "K" is silent; it's pronounced "Whey," which is what "WHY??" sounds like in Korean. It's MY word. I can do that😜). What a worn-out, 15th-hand, dried out plot point in which a couple, after connecting when they were kids, end up falling in love after years of separation. It's a tie in to a couple being “fated”, but is that important enough to wedge it in and toss out originality? Along with the word "cringey," let's put WKEWY to sleep for a hundred years. When WKEWY makes it into a show for no apparent reason, we must ask WHY?? would they do that?! Kids Show or not, there's more eye-rollers than Knights in CAT4K.
It is still good enough. They deal with the death of a childhood friend and a character who is riddled with guilt. It is a good opportunity to discuss these topics with your child, but it may be too much for some kids, so decide accordingly.
You May Like:
For the 10-14 age group, Part Time Idol, Strongest Delivery Man, D4DJ, The Miracle, Spark, Bodacious Space Pirates, Belle, Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle, One Piece, The Dragon Prince, Avatar The Last Airbender & Trollhunters are all good to excellent.
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This review may contain spoilers
I am not a fan of this cheesy, fairy-tale-like kind of dramas but I do love some dose of romance. This is why at episode 3, while trying to understand what propelled me to continue watching this drama, I also started thinking what did I want to change in order for it to actually be a drama that I would enjoy watching because of the characters and not because of the stupid reverse harem kind of fresh storyline. First of all, Eun HaWon is a pretty okay character. I felt bad for her and at the same time cheered for me, and was proud of her and she let me feel ashamed of how actually a person can be so greedy, while she just enjoying the little she had and never put her head down. Eun HaWon, in another setting wouldn't have worked. She is confident, nice and feisty, but especially strong. I liked Eun HaWon and honestly she was a refreshing sight in terms of female leads. On the other hand, the rest, just kind of passes by. So much potential wasted, it's crazy. But, the thing that makes me go crazy is definitely the treatment the writers had for SeoWoo. Honestly, nice guy, has a knack for music, knows how to cook, has a little perfectionist side and a cute smile? But no, we just make him dirty, because well, we need a character to be in love with the female lead but that could never have her because she is of course in love with someone else. And the way he humiliated himself just for her not to take the toll? Girl, if you don't want him, I'll take him. SeoWoo was a surprise, and I honestly thought that maybe, they could have something else for him, but apparently not.
Onto other matters, Lee YoonSung. Please, he was the cutest guy in the whole drama, and just didn't fit into the drama whatsoever. I wish we could see him being a male lead in a better drama next time. Getting to the REAL triangle in this whole mess. I must admit that I cheered for HyunMin since the beginning. HyunMin is just lost in his own little world, where he blames himself for everything and where everyone just leaves him, and then suddenly he meets someone he genuinely likes a person, for the first time in a while, just for her being a person and this whole thing, which could have been more developed if only they didn't want HyunMin to be a fake second lead for a while, just goes by with a confession and them kinda being friends, and then ignoring each other most of the time. I don't understand why did they did not show how HyunMin grows, a growth that is due to HaWon, in terms of person. HyunMin seems to snap out of his habits and just return to be warm after HaWon, but all of this gets trashed for Parl HyeJi, and him toying with her. As for Park HyeJi, I am so angry with the writers. She is a passive person, in love with someone, or more obsessed, for more than 10 years, she literally just cries. She has no backbone and her character just feels fake and forces. God, do you have any dignity left girl? Please, I hate to see her just throwing herself to a guy that clearly does not want her and then just adjusting this whole non sense into him being actually in-love with her for years but blaming himself for the death of her brother. Wow, never saw so much trashed piled up altogether and ruining a character. I am so sorry, HyunMin. I am sorry as well for JiWoon. JiWoon,was not a disappointment, but a bit more. His passion for cars/motors? Absolutely useless (same as HyeJi being a designer). His friends? Never saw them again. The overprotective older brother character to HyeJi was overbearing and cliche, tiring and forced. Did he have actual feelings for her? And why the whole I-am-tired-of-you-so-lemme-switch-to-your-cousin trope? Absolutely daunting. JiWoon could have been the treasure of the show, but he was just the typical tsundere that has cute moments. Very, very sad.
The romance was okay, I guess. They were cute, cringey and romantic. But I gueas that's what you can expect of this kind of drama. I did like some episodes, the way characters reacted, but in the end, the whole plot just feels fake, with fixed cliches that have no window of expiration in this drama, and a few forced scenes. YoonSung and SeoWoo, you deserved better.
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Nostalgic, but not my cup of tea.
Cinderella and the Four Knights is cliche as you'll get to be honest, given the name and all. I didn't hate it, but it wouldn't be on my top 10. I liked all the cutesy scenes in it, and when I first watched it the love triangles messed with me a lot! Poor girl, a bunch or rich guys the monets to come with. The chick you'll hate and the second lead you'll love almost more than the main lead himself. This drama did start off pretty well, but went downhill from around episode 7-8ish. Very predictable.The actors were nicely chosen for this type of drama, but even tghough they tried hard to give the character justice, it didn't really work out. Not saying the characters were completely terrible, they just weren't as good as they could've been.
The OST's were nice.
I wouldn't rewatch this drama because It would be a waste of my time. If you're looking for something light to watch in the background, this could do.
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YES , it IS Cliché, and it doesn't hide it!
This is base don my expectations of this type pf dramas and issues withot.So when I go for a poor girl/rich guy, I alredy accept that the plot is gonna be quite ridiculous ,in favor of the good things that could come of it (for me, mainly comedy , and eventually good romantic chemestry).So when a drama of this trope seems to want to remind me of the ridiculness of its premiss and treat me as stupid because I accepted it , through though and "rationnal figures" ( The evil rich family), to me , the whole point of the show has been missed, which makes it a pure waste of time. Also the dynamic happy-lucky-go girl/rational-strict guy is one that trully gets on my nerves.
So, when I start this drama, what really pleased me is, although the roles of all the characters is cliché and falls in line with what i described from a writing perspective, the execution and portrayalof the characters is completely embracing the ridiculness, which makes it a real fun drama.Everyone , including "the evil" grandpa could be made fun of and is here to make us laugh.
Everyone is ridiculously funny to the same level, and you can just relax and enjoy without this vibe getting trampled upon.
Now wether it's gonna be cringe or not has to do with your own cringemeter and treshold on that matter.
Yes the story is passable at best , but this not the area I expected to be good at anyway.I did what I wanted it to do, and if you're jot looking just for fun and cuteness , this is not going to be for you.
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wtf was going on in this show
i dont know who woke up one day and thought "yeah itd be a great idea to make a kdrama of 4 cousins who HATE each other fall in love with the same girl" ????????? like bffr. i thought this was gonna be something similar to the 3 musketeers ... oh boy i was so wrong. this kdrama was not even memorable which says a lot about its impact ..... but what i can tell u is that it was not the best. the female lead is an orphan, broke, and randomly runs into the grandfather of the 4 cousins and ofc he decides "yeah this broke sensitive emotional girl can definitely be the mediator for family drama even tho her own family hates her!!!!" again ???????? oh and ofc he bribes her with money to do it all .... anyway all of the cousins have a distinct personality but yk what im still curious about to this day ... the 4th man who "likes" her wasnt even like ..... showed??????? the first cousin is this guy who has beef with his ex gf ... and she also happens to be the best friend of another cousin (who is the male lead) .... and he uses the female lead to make his ex gf jealous but then actually ends up liking her ??? like damn bro pick a struggle please ... and the male lead (surprise surprise is who she ends up with) is the typical stereotypical "badass" like no ... bro i rewatched the trailer the other day and why the hell was he beating up a gang at a high school im so confused??????? why is there even a gang????? these are rich ass men wtf are you doing there ??????? he was also so rude to the female lead so idk why she was so damn attached to him .... and he was so nice to his best friend like ugh ew red flag .... please it was just too much. ... and the 3rd cousin was a singer/song writer and lowkey the nicest but NOOO OBVI she didnt get with him ... ok but the thing is idfk who the 4th guy was?????? like god i hope it wasnt the grandfather .... anyway there was so much about this show that was interesting like the 2nd female lead ..... she drowned one time ???? and the acting was bad like ok i get it its hard to act like ur drowning but i genuinely couldnt tell if the character was purposely drowning to get her exs attention (cuz he was there) or if the actor couldnt act like she was drowning .... anyway yeah this show was just so ... interesting ... but the ost did eat MYY ONNNEEEEE ANNND ONLLY YOOOOU yeah id rewatch just to talk shit ngl but other than that yeah its not worth it dont waste ur timeWas this review helpful to you?
Great starter show for those who are new to K-RomCom
One of my favorite actors stars in this. Jung Il Woo, who is also in Sweet Munchies, is who really started me on Korean tv and movies. Since than I've watched everything I could with him in it. Tho the story is a familiar one the twist gives it a new dimension. I think this is an excellent starter for newbies or even for those familiar with Korean tv shows because of the base story being easily followed because who doesn't know the story of cinderella. I also love how the female lead isn't too girly, she can handle her own.Was this review helpful to you?
HOT MESS
This show is a hot mess! Really.FOR PEOPLE WHO: want to watch couples with lots of issues, misunderstandings, senseless fights, who like to make things hard for themselves.
It's for people who want to hate watch shows. Really the only reason I finished the series is because I love shouting in frustration at the characters and what a hot mess they were. Especially Naeun's character. Omg so annoying.
NOT FOR PEOPLE WHO: want to watch a decent poor girl, rich boy story. Not for people who want a convincing reverse harem/love triangle/love rectangle relationship. Sure the female lead was nice but.. really?
OVERALL:
I loved hate watching it though but really I won't watch it again. The only reason I'd recommend it to someone else is so that they'll hate watch it too and we can hate comment on it together. Spread the despair. And also, I like the actors but not in this show. I also liked BTOB's song. Anynway, in short, if you want to become even more frustrated, or want to vent your frustration, then watch this and shout at your screen.
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Was it worth it: Absolutely.
What I liked the most: “The kisses,” she said unapologetically.
What I disliked the most: The music during the “tense” moments got cheesy. I rolled my eyes a few times.
Moment Meter: 6/10 – Lots of moments. The quality of the moments, however, ranges from straight cheese to heart attack.
Other thoughts: I’m a Jung Il Woo fan, because even though he isn’t drop dead gorgeous, he has some flattering angles and a knack for intense acting. Combine that with the fact that he had the tsundere character (like usual), and this was a hit for me. (He’s also a phenomenal on-screen kisser)
Note: Certain actors will automatically make the drama better (for me), so the rest of the review will be biased. Consider yourself warned.
It watched a lot like a reverse-harem anime, which I enjoy from time to time. Park So Dam nailed this role, and has good control over the tones in her voice. I’m not too crazy about Ahn Jae Hyun’s acting. He didn’t do poorly, but I didn’t get as much feeling from him as I did the others, and one of them is a musician before they’re an actor. I liked the story and it moved along well without stagnating too often.
Conclusion: Actor bias boosted this one up for me, so I would have enjoyed it even if it were complete garbage. Was it unpredictable and fresh? Not entirely, but it hit all of those juicy KDrama notes that keep me coming back for more.
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But, I was wrong!
Strong cast, great chemistry between all characters, excellent story line which brought out the theme of the drama and none of the episodes felt too long - kept me going from one to the next! There was such a strong chemistry between the leads, and it didn't feel forced at any point and the story didn't fall apart or seem incredulous either.
For once, I thought the OST was good too (though I don't understand Korean) but the music brought out the feelings. The characters were quite true to life without a lot of the melodrama that sometimes goes with dramatizing the difference between rich boys and poor girls thrown into their lot. A clean and sweet drama, full of touching scenes where you just want to go back, re-watch and live the feeling all over again. I don't usually re-watch dramas, but this is going to be one of the ones I will watch again!
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After watching: UPDATE----- LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!!! SO GOOD AND OST WAS AHHHHMAZZZZZING!
Honestly, I was pretty hesitant to start watching this show because it looked really cliched, but it was actually really really REALLY good! I wasn't expecting to enjoy it as much as I did and I'm so glad I ended up watching it. It still stands as one of the best drama OST's EVER (for me personally), with each song sucking you in, feeling how the main characters are feeling.
The plot is pretty straight forward being a Cinderella story, but you shouldn't pick up this show thinking it will be unique, because, really, it's not. It's the same ol' story told in a fun, sweet, happily-ever-after, modern style way. The ending has all the loose ends wrapped up nicely and leaving you feeling super happy. I still watch the music videos on Youtube just to see the hilarity of the character dynamics and how the story inevitably unfolds.
I am not a fan of Cinderella stories traditionally, but this show is something I would gladly rewatch, force others to watch with me, and sing along the whole way through!
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Park So Dam as Eun Ha Won saves this drama. She is so adorable, strong and determined. She isn't stupid from the beginning and doesn't get on the nerves like other characters similar to her. I mean I still avoid the girl that played the female lead in BOF. The other actors are good to considering what they have to work with.
I loved the music.
I may rewatch this some day for fun, but I highly doubt it.
If you like reverse harem dramas, then this is one of the best I have seen.
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