Beautiful Gong Shim

Why i dropped this drama...

Because I began to get tired of it. It started off very well Gong shim (GS) was lovely and endearing. You felt for her and really wanted her to succeed. Ahn Dan Tae (ADT) - Nam Gung Min (NGM) was too funny, if you've seen him in other stuff like The Girl Who Sees Smells he plays a villain really well to the point that I was so shocked when I saw him play this role, he brings a goofy, lightness to the comedy that makes you laugh out loud. Joon Soo is too adorable, really fell in love with him and was kind of upset he was the second lead.

Now my problem and the reason why I dropped this drama...bare with me...

It went off track bizarrely....

This is the synopsis 'This drama is about the Love story of two sisters and two men. The talented older sister has everything, including a beautiful appearance, and her younger sister, who is less attractive but still has a warm heart. And two men appear in front of the siblings: a progressively more attractive man, who moved into a humble rental room on the rooftop of their building and another man who is handsome and wealthy from a plutocrat family. The romance-comedy drama depicts an eventful and unpredictable love story by the four people from such a warmhearted point of view.'
So you expect to not see the underhandedness of the older sister (cant even say her name she annoyed me so), the extra storyline of hidden identities and playing guess who became annoying because unfortunately we as the viewer knew what was happening before anybody else which made it seem like we were watching a trainwreck happen.
Characters began to change, GS didn't seem to grow anymore as her character was hidden by the 2 male leads storylines. Watching it on Viki all people seemed to comment about her after awhile, was about that bloody wig.
The bromance between ADT and JS (which was so endearing to watch deteriorated quickly which angered me as it was all a stupid misunderstanding.

It was almost like the writers got changed mid-show.

Music is alright (couldn't find on Spotify though)

Bare in mind I did drop this drama...so I don't know if it had a marvelous ending which brought it back. That's why I rated the rewatch value as 8 as when I have the time and energy to marathon watch it I may enjoy it more......keyword - MAY.

Do you know what. watching this drams is like watching someone run a race and they start off very well, even cracking jokes because they are in the lead then they stumble, you grimace, they get up and you hope they will be fine so you keep watching....then they keep
falling and don't even make it to the finishing line.....yeah....that what this was.

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Why call it a romance?

This was a wasted 20 episodes of a typical run of the mill drama.
The genre is comedy, romance and drama.
The comedy is cute in the first few episodes.
The drama drags on and on.
The romance - seriously don't trust it.

There was no attention paid to the development of relationship, no chemistry and not one single heart fluttering moment.

After I finished the 20 torturous episodes, I looked up the details on the cast.
The ML is 15 years older than the FL, which is not the problem at all - but then it all fell into place.
He was just so uncomfortable with her, barely held her hand or hugged her.
He was also presumably confirming his dating relationship that same year, so the romantic scenes may have been painful.

The second pair was even worse. Not their acting, just their situation. Pooooorly done.

Watch it for any other reason except the misnomer of romance.

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It was quirky but not like watching fools - I have seen dramas where they were goofy and trying to be funny but the humor was not to my liking (like Birth of a Beauty). Also, I was enjoying it and then I read the comments/reviews... kinda killed my love for it. You know, like if I should continue watching it or not. Well I did, it was still fun to watch - it is not a total loss, it lost its momentum but I have seen worst dramas. But the comedy in one scene when he was pretending to sleep so that somebody can tuck him in - I was laughing so much. The lead actor really looked goofy compared to the other dramas he has made - it was weird seeing him that way but he did the character justice. The sister, oh I hated her for her manipulativeness (you have to hate somebody in the drama, right?) The second leading man, what a waste (I mean he was nice too and almost felt sorry for him, I wish he would get nice girl too.) -- he had his own charming personality.

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This is an example of "if it ain't broken, then why bother fixing?" Looking at you, storyline!

Super predictable plot, yet well executed, if all you are expecting is a cute rom-com. The rom-com moments had me laughing and smiling. Featuring a super adorable couple, you are rooting for them every step of the way. Great chemistry between the two main leads.

Namgoong Min is, of course, the MVP of the show. Ahn Dan Tae was a very well written character, and Min pulled off the character perfectly with his comedic acting. A little bit of swagger, a lot of heart and empathy. Gong Shim was also the perfectly written female lead. She's sweet, capable, and bold. Even though she has insecurities, she doesn't let her past hold her down and she pursues her dreams with vigor.

I almost didn't watch this because of Gong Mi's character, which is super annoying. She had no redeeming qualities, which is a waste on the writers' part. Joon Soo was a forgettable character, but thankfully his character did develop throughout the course of the drama.

Some other highlights beyond the adorable lead couple (they are seriously goals!), are: bromantic moments between the ahjusshis, great OST and sound effects, hilarious daydreams, and fun outfits worn by the cast.

I have mixed feelings on whether I liked the pace of the drama or not. On one hand, it dragged, especially towards the end. On the other hand, I loved all of the slice of life, fun moments from the main couple, which we were only able to see and enjoy because the drama is 20 episodes instead of 16.

All in all, don't have high expectations, and you will be pleasantly surprised and be able to fully enjoy this fun and lighthearted rom-com!

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Yes but No

If you watch this show binge it. Watch it like a shot, all at once. This show so much potentially. First of all the description here incorret. It is about a lawyer that finds out his life was a life bacially with a dose of needed romance. ☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆ Storyline: I would say the storyline was a 7.5 mostly becuase it drag for a bit. Towards the end I found mysled skipping some scenes. ▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎ Cast/actould be a good 9. The characters abd avting was amazing and i was most definitely there for the ML. ▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎ Music would be a 10. Did i know the lyrics? NO. But the way i was bopping along. ▪︎¤▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎ Would.i watch this again? Maybe at the end of the year. But again this would be a good binge.com

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Ugly duckling is an inner swan

It's a funny storyline about a girl living her whole life ignored by her parents because of her spoiled, selfish, lying, scheming prettier sister. Enter the two male leads who genuinely like the female lead for her inner beauty, in spite of her drab, ugly duckling exterior. One says he likes her cute face, and the other says she is just his type! OH, WHAT DREAMY LEADING MEN WITH SWOON FACTOR!

I loved Minah in "Absolute Boyfriend," and here she reveals how truly versatile she is as a comedic actress. She alone could pull off the wig prop yet still be her beautiful self! The writers tell us that the female lead has a significant bald spot because of all the stress she has lived under! Most of her youth, she was having to struggle so hard at a countless number of jobs while her good-looking sister got everything handed to her on a silver platter by shallow parents who only played favorites!

I watched with SATISFACTION when the terrible parents reaped what they sowed from putting all their eggs in one basket so that when the spoilt sister got the results of her actions, they got humiliated! Finally, they did manage to redeem themselves in my eyes.

I have adored Namgoong Min since "Twelve Years Promise" or "Wild Chives and Soybean Soup." I find him gorgeous and so youthful looking for his age. He really pulled off his comedic role in this drama which left me in side-splitting laughter or chuckles many times. He is so obviously jealous when he bothers her on her dates with the other male lead, yet he questions himself why he's acting this way! Codependents are always last to see ourselves while it's so clear to everyone else, LOL.

Considering all he went through in the shrouded mystery of his past, can we wonder why it's so hard for him to KNOW HIMSELF, understand his own behavior and make the wisest choices in love? Yet he endeared himself to me in this role because of his extremely KIND HEART, his championing of the underprivileged and underdogs, and his puppy-love eyes for Kong Shim. He was completely his happy-go-lucky self in capris, flip flops, a glowing smile and his boyish haircut until truth hit.

Yes, I did feel second lead syndrome in this drama, as On Joo Wan was not down deep like his cheating, underhanded, conniving leeches of a family, and he wanted to protect his mother most of all. I thought he did show AUTHENTIC AFFECTION for Kong Shim! However, Namgoong Min saw her for who she really was, thinning hair and all. He even gifted her with a weird selection plus helping her with her stress level. That's how much he cared about her TRUE SELF so his character deserves to be main lead!

Other reviews were negative about her not getting a makeover until the last episode. For me, that reveals the men's genuine love for her inner beauty so that fact RATES HIGH on my love radar. Good plot twists, and there was no wasted time on title sequences, opening credits or previews.

Why does this drama have so much appeal? In everyone's heart, we ALL long to be loved just for ourselves! Not for our looks because they will fade with age, not for our success because there's no guarantee what the economy brings, not for our money because it can't buy happiness, and not even for our smarts because our mind could betray us. JUST TO BE LOVED FOR WHO WE ARE, AS SIMPLE AS THAT. I do believe the dear fair lady Kong Shim deserved that, as well as ALL OF US. That's the subconscious message coming through to our hearts when we watch an ugly duckling being loved for her inner swan.

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A walkthrough on Eastern Asian stereotypes

This is exactly as I described. Who is beautiful, who is handsome and why, why does it even matter more than other qualities, what is a hierarchy, what is a current matrix of success, development, happiness, what are expectations and a role of elders/family/children - all this is pictured here to the levels of over-visibility. Eastern Asia seems to actually work like that, speaking from experience. Of course, it's exaggerated in dramas but still - the base tendencies remain.

Imagine the most typical scene of the most typical drama - a boss/new employee enters a building and the whole flock of office ladies start saying how handsome he is. Imagine another scene - a main heroine with a face of a frog is complimented by her secretary how beautiful she looks like since it is implied that a beautiful secretary is supposed to be that "less attractive" than a FL. There will be thousands of scenes of this sort here. Just random rubbish based on social hierarchy, expectations and a matrix.

Like your typical, pop-culture Asian Man helmet hairstyle vs thousands of different hairstyles possible that "alternative", creative and much more handsome Asian mean wear but they will never be considered handsome in those cultures. Anyway, I am still waiting for a drama with a long-haired ML CEO with a beard + a a short, pink haired "gal" FL secretary or even better - with reversed positions.

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La ricetta per la commedia perfetta!

Al di là del voto che si può dare a una trama, alla recitazione, alla sceneggiatura o quant'altro, per me il metro di valutazione di un drama si riconduce spesso a un solo quesito: quante volte ho riguardato la serie? Nel caso di Beautful Gong Shim, direi abbastanza da farla finire tra le mie preferite.
Ci sono i tratti spensierati e divertenti - a volte proprio esilaranti - di una commedia fresca e frizzante. C'è un mistero da risolvere, questioni da dipanare, situazioni difficili da affrontare nel presente e da ricollegare nel passato. Non è una serie insipida e senza trama, che non sa bene dove inizia e dove vuole arrivare. Il punto di partenza e la linea di arrivo erano evidentemente ben chiare in coloro che hanno ideato la storia. E, nel mezzo, c'è lo spettacolo: quello di qualità, che intrattiene, che emoziona, che fa riflettere. C'è una protagonista che inizialmente mi ha spiazzata, nel suo aspetto un po' scialbo che non si mostrava come il finto brutto anatroccolo pronto a trasformarsi in un cigno, ma che così rimane fin quasi alla fine. Kong Shim si rivela un personaggio espressivo, dove l'aspetto perde di significato e consente di aprire una finestra che guarda dentro il personaggio, alle sue emozioni, alla scarsa autostima, ai desideri. Si entra in empatia con lei e si torna a seguirla "da fuori" osservandola con simpatia, perchè se non è "carina" esteticamente, è "carina" nel suo modo di essere. Se poi a un'attrice che per l'appunto si rivela davvero una notevole sorpresa si affianca poi uno dei migliori attori coreani - anzi diciamo pure il migliore, per quanto mi riguarda - non può che derivarne una coppia sensazionale. Namgoon Min, attore superbo su tutti i fronti, riveste i panni di un personaggio ben studiato e complesso, che gli permette di dare prova della sua versatilità e capacità recitativa, dando vita a un An Dan Tae espressivo e affascinante, singolare e intrigante, sensibile e intelligente, divertente e profondo. Gli attori secondari un po' scompaiono, al confronto, ma non è poi un gran problema: la chimica che c'è tra la coppia principale domina lo schermo senza mai annoiare. Entrambi i personaggi subiscono un'evoluzione, che se per lei è la conquista della propria autostima, della fiducia nelle proprie capacità e nel riconoscimento di queste da parte degli altri, per lui è un po' la ricerca del suo posto nel mondo, il venire a patti con le proprie radice, scoprendo i tasselli di un passato che mancava. Azzeccata la colonna sonora.
SPOILER: se dovessi proprio trovare un difetto, un unico passaggio poco sensato in una trama che per il resto è certamente coerente, è la motivazione - nella parte finale - dell'allontanamento tra i due: che fosse "preso" (24h su 24?) o che il mantenersi in contatto il vivere a distanza...nessuna delle due spiegazioni è sensatamente valida e realistica. Ma, del resto, senza una separazione - non solo geografica ma anche relazionale - non avrebbe potuto esserci il grand finale con la coppia che si ritrova. Diciamo che il meccanismo causa-effetto aveva bisogno di una "causa" un po' più credibile, al di là della riuscita dell' "effetto" desiderato. Ma si tratta giusto di una piccola svista, di poco conto rispetto al resto. Concludendo, un drama che vale davvero la pena vedere, una piccola perla che rischia di passare inosservata (io stessa ammetto l'ho scoperta solo perchè ero alla ricerca di altri drama con Namgoong Min).

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