The poor humor fails to hold up a very weak story with a very imbalanced message.
This drama wasn't trying to be too grand so it feels a little excessive to be too dramatic in denouncing it. I watched it for the humor, for a silly, bizarre story that didn't take itself too seriously. Which is largely what this was. The humor was humorous, even if sometimes it was quite cringey. The story was fairly cute, if love triangles don't bother you too much (they bother me, but whatever).Stories like this, that do this deliberate switching around of gender roles, are always failures when they try to say too much. I've never seen such a drama that didn't get a worrying amount of basic stuff wrong.
The general idea here is that the Do women are the strong ones in their families, both in terms of physical strength and personality. To borrow an old expression, they wear the pants. In that sense I really appreciated that Do Bong Soon was actually more meek and submissive than her forebears. The contrast was more compelling and it allowed for growth as her character, presumably, would learn that physical strength isn't the only or even the most important kind of strength. And that was a bit what they were doing.
The difference in how the two male leads treated her was also interesting. They both still had an instinct to protect the woman they cared about (which is good and fine), but one did so because she was weak (he assumed) while the other was doing so because no one should have to endure dangers and hardship no matter how strong they are.
That was pretty much the only thing they did right. The rest of the drama was deeply weird in its depiction of "strong" women. I'm not sure I agree with viewers who say that Do Bong Soon's mother was trying to get her to basically rape the main guy. I only watched till episode 10 so maybe that occurred after that. What I saw was a wildly overbearing mother who insisted that her daughter make the first move with a guy who would definitely reciprocate because he's a hot-blooded male. Tasteless and vulgar, yes, but not rape. Somewhat funny at first given how inappropriate it was and how much Do Bong Soon hated it. But it dragged on way too long.
I'm also not sure I agree with other reviewers who say she was abusing her power the entire drama. The fact is that yes, the way she was slapping people around who were much, much weaker than her was pretty excessive. But that's where the tone and message of this drama fails. According to its own rules, the Do women can be physically abusive with their strength if it helps other, weaker people, or at least doesn't serve their own interests. Which seems fine, but it implies that smacking people around because you can is generally acceptable as long as the person getting smacked around is "bad." Too, Bong Soon almost always beat up men who were hurting women, children or the elderly. Which, again, is fine within the environment of the drama. But her beatings were BRUTAL. By anyone's standards. And this enormous imbalance of power is never addressed. It's all okay, according to the writers, because she's a small woman who has been underestimated. And therefore deserves to be brutal? Or has the right to be cruel enough to make her a villain in any other story? According to the writers this is all fine because it's funny.
All the Do women in the drama (Do Bong Soon being only somewhat of an exception) are terrible. If this drama were described without specifying the genders of any characters, Bong Soon's mother would be assumed to be a hated villain and the rest to be backwards and sexist. Funny how that assumption is reversed when you find out they're women. I have no problem with women being depicted as overbearing and prickly. I have no problem with women being depicted as too domineering and somewhat cruel in a relationship, especially if they experience growth along the story. But domestic violence is never funny. The rest, sure. A person could make a kind of comedy out of it. But things like domestic violence are not funny. If the gender roles were reversed and the man was bruising the body of the woman, it would never be depicted as funny. So why is it funny for the woman to do so?
I found that alone disturbing and off-putting enough to make it impossible to continue watching. The thing is, this drama's story is not great. Its success relies entirely on the quality of the romance and the quality of the comedy.
The romance was a long drawn-out love triangle. I hate love triangles so I'm a bit biased when I say it was therefore unwatchable. Strange, though, because there was some mature dialogue about how childish and selfish love triangles can be and how acting only on one's emotions always hurts people. And then the entire romance is a love triangle? Actually more of a love... octagon? I lost track.
The comedy was, at first, wonderful. Silly and absurd and nonsensical but with just enough heart. But then it lost its footing. The gangsters in the hospital, especially the one who lost his teeth, were more gross than funny. Humor suitable for a five-year-old maybe. The mother's abusive nature was never funny, despite countless scenes that made us believe that the writers seemed to think so. Their attempt to redeem her was set against the backdrop of kindergarten humor so it lacked both logic and drama.
The humorous interplay between Bong Soon and her boss was genuinely funny. Her ineptitude as a bodyguard was logically acceptable because how the hell would she know the first thing about being a bodyguard? And the absurdity of hiring her was another nonsensical illogical piece of comedy that could survive the environment of a drama that doesn't make any other kind of sense. But her almost mercenary motives painted her character in a selfish light that was never remedied with growth. And then the humorous interplay was taken over by semi-serious, semi-humorous love triangle antics so it lost all its charm.
The general idea of great physical power making a person able to dominate any relationship was never really addressed even though they set it up repeatedly. The dominant mother was never called out for abusing her own power -- physical or emotional -- as a strong woman hurting weak people with her strength. Meanwhile Do Bong Soon was expressing sorrow that the serial kidnapper was using his strength to hurt weak women. Is using one's strength to hurt people only bad if you're male? The writers of this drama definitely thought so. Thus you get humor that fits this world view and it never sits right.
Ultimately the humor fails to hold up a very weak story with a very imbalanced message. Eventually the humor becomes as much of a drag as the rest. I wouldn't recommend this drama to anyone.
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Sounds a bit far stretched? I don't disagree, but that is part of the charm of this series. To this day, I cannot think of a drama that made me literally cry from laughter or squeek from delight. Bonus is a cute soundtrack, nearly perfect special effects you don't even notice, and some really great side characters. I was hooked on episode one, and the adorable romance between Park Bo-young and Park Hyung-sik has made me come back to this series multiple times. I hope you love it just as much as I do!
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you need to watch it, before u die
it's The best, i instally fell in Love with it, i am so happy that there Will be season 2, but so sad because of diffirent actors. I Will never forget it, it's Stilo in my heart. i was laughing like crazy, all my family though i have gone Mad🤣. i Love it! it's so cute and romantic. i really highly recommend it, i was happy it was mostly romantic, but sometimes thriller, so it wasnt boring. i was happy because there was only one sad moment in all 16 episodes, i really cried, but it was Stilo good.Was this review helpful to you?
Crazy mix of cute, creepy and cringe
First things first, you gotta know what you’re in for when watching this show. It’s above all a show that doesn’t take itself too seriously; almost everything about it is over the top. This has resulted in a crazy mix of extremes - extreme cute (our FL and the cutest OTP that ever lived), creepy (all villian parts) and cringe (basically anytime a side character was on screen, with the exception of Dad, Bongki and the SFL). It goes from one to the other in the bat of an eye. I loved the cute, could put up with the creepy and had to mark this show down because of the cringe.It is, undoubtedly, hands down the cutest thing I’ve ever watched. I ADORED every minute of the cute: this show has one of my fav strong FLs ever and the cutest OTP of all time. Bong Soon is perfect as a TINY, harmless looking little pipsquek who is actually a Herculean superhero. It’s completely awesome and hilarious. The OTP is adorable. The word “squee” was made for them. Their chemistry and interactions are perfect, such that even the absolute cheesiest scenes and moments still worked for me, and soooo many scenes were extra cheesy and would have been cringe with different leads. Min Hyuk especially was just flawless in his portrayal of a puddle of goo. I loved that he was always so supportive of BS, loving her in spite of and regardless of her superpower. Yes this is a traditional role reversal but MH is no pushover, he totally deserves his badass CEO title and I loved the scene where he went toe to toe with the baddie and took him down. He is assertive and cocky and makes no secret of what he wants, yet is always respectful and kind to BS and waits for her patiently (quite literally) to catch up with him. I loved it. The OTP scenes and interactions were SO CUTE I was slayed (exactly how MH crumbles to the ground in the face of too much BS cute), but it’s really not all fluff.
Another shout out to the SML who makes up the third in the ass-kicking trio. His chemistry with MH (yes, MH) and the scenes they had were LOL hilarious and also my fav. When these 3 get together they light up the screen and it is always entertaining. The final showdown scene with the villian was also SO satisfying. 10/10.
The reason I’m not scoring this show higher is the cringe - all the filler characters and the amount of time we spent with them. I actually ff my way through the entire sequences with Tak Baek’s gang, Mr Oh, Mr Gong and even BS’ mother. Those scenes were an example of over the top slapstick that crossed the line into cringe for me.
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This review may contain spoilers
If u like to watch strong female with romcom
I don't know why there are so many bad reviews here on this aap. This drama is already famous and beautiful altogether.(If you're not fan of romantic comedy with female action or mixed genres, pls do not watch it to later criticizing it badly)
(Try to enjoy the romance and humor they has to offer with going all protective)
I've watched it many times just to re-watch the cuteness of the couples.
She tiny, powerful, cute, beats all the bad guys (she's not a bully for teaching a good lesson to bad peoples), falls out of love from her long term crush after ignored for long, both of the couples are really cute, do not criticize for her being not able to control her power in the starting and getting overboard, she's smug which suits her, handling all those powers are not easy.
I only didn't like the character of her mother who's abusive towards her husband. Otherwise everything is fine.
The male lead, first rumoured as gay, but he later clarified his reason, he's cute and head over heals in love with her, smart, handle everything perfectly, a charismatic CEO, supports do bong soon, trains her, wants to protect her even though she's powerful.
The police force is showed useless but the plot needed this to let our three heroes catch the kidnappers.
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Not A Rom Com, Should Be An Action Comedy
Watching this in 2025, I can't believe that this is so popular back in 2017. This show has most elements of typical K-Drama romcoms: triangle love, kidnapper, childhoold relationship, problematic rich family and obsessed parents. I was expecting this show to be a pure romcom but the vibe is so dark even from the very first episode. There are three group of villains which makes me questioning the original genre of this show.While three group of villains seem intriguing, the resolutions are not always well executed. The not-so-thriller tropes are quite dragging and predictable. CEO Ahn's blackmail case ends very plainly, it doesn't even require Bong-Soon's involvement. Instead, Min-Hyeok just tells him to stop, and he stops! When Bong-Soon shoves the kidnapper while saving Gyeong-Sim, the kidnapper only gets minor injury. This doesn't make sense because even Mr. Gong breaks his tailbone just by chicken-fighting her. Also it's quite a plothole when the police finally raid the car dump in Episode 12, they don't go for the secret room even though Guk-Du knows where it is. The character Monk Nizamuddin is added for whatever purpose and then they dispose it suddenly in the middle of the story.
The positive side from this show is the performance from the main leads. Park Bo-Young brings an iconic spirit of Do Bong-Soon, while Park Hyung-Sik is having an excellent job as her co-star. The soundtrack is also great here. And shout out to the product placement in this show. They do it perfectly rather than going absurd as usual!
If you are looking for a comedy, yes this maybe an option. But don't look for the romance, as it will be overshadowed by the busier (not-so-)thriller.
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It was.. okay
Honestly, I went into this drama with high expectations after seeing so many glowing recommendations, but I ended up feeling a little disappointed. I still gave it a 7/10 because I genuinely enjoyed the main storyline and the chemistry between the female and male lead. Unfortunately, almost everything else felt like a major letdown.While it has its strengths, I personally wouldn't recommend it unless you're specifically interested in the leads or the central romance.
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I ABSOLUTELY FELL IN LOVE WITH THIS DRAMA !
From the cast to the storyline to the soundtrack, I loved everything about " Strong Woman Do Bong Soon ". The performance of Park Bo Young was fantastic and she just fitted the character. I liked the fact that she kept looking cute and shy while hiding her power. Usually, when I hear a strong woman I picture some bulky girl with a scary intimidating face.
Moreover, the chemistry was attracting. In some episodes, you can mistake them for a real couple. You can see the love that Park Hung Sik bears for his co-star. He nailed the romantic scenes.
Overall, I loved this drama and I recommend it strongly for people who are looking for a different storyline than the typical romantic comedies.
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Funny
I thought this show was very funny at times, and lovely at others. I wouldn't say it was as romantic as some other shows I have watched but was still good. I kind of felt it was too short. I finished it all in one day, but that's just me. I love binge watching shows and to be honest sometimes it's better if it's short rather than dragging on. Kiss scenes where good and I could feel the chemistry between the main characters to the point where I had to have a second look at my husband and wonder why I chose him 😆Was this review helpful to you?
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Strong Woman Do Bong Soon is a comedic show with dark undertones. Some scenes get real dark and also quite graphic. The show can have such a tone shift from being goofy and cute to dark and serious. I'm not so sure if I like this tone shift that much. The show often feels like a kids show or at least a younger audience, but then it can turn real dark at times.I did not like the story that much. It tries to be mysterious and dark while also just having lots of filler with fluff and goofiness. The thriller parts are okay at best. I think my biggest issue with the plot is that it lacks exciting conflicts. They try having conflicts with the kidnapper, the gang and the love triangle, but the conflicts just don't feel that serious. The series feels slow paced. Many scenes could have been skipped or shortened. I think the slow pace is the shows biggest flaw. It's 16 episodes long, over 1 hour each, and it did not need to be that long. I often felt like just dropping the show just because of its length.
The kidnapper plotline was okay. It was not really mysterious, but it did have some tense scenes. At least this plotline contributed to character development in Do Bong Soon and I felt like it actually served some purpose.
The gang plot was the worst of them all. It was never funny and I was just annoyed whenever there were scenes with the gang. They also did not really contribute any value to the overall story. Additionally, there were just too many gross scenes with the gang. They looked disgusting when they were beat up and did disgusting things. I suppose these scenes was meant to be funny, but they were just repulsive. I would have liked the show more if they just removed the whole gang plotline.
I did enjoy the love triangle, but I kinda wanted a bit more of it. The love triangle also felt a bit plain at times with no real depth. Like we have two dudes fighting over a girl and that's just it. Also the love triangle was really predictable. I knew it from the first episode how the love triangle would develop and who Do Bong Soon would end up together with.
Still, the strongest point in this series is the romance. When the romance really started to take off during the later half of the show it became so much more enjoyable to watch. There were many really cute romance scenes. Just how they act with each other is wholesome and beautiful to watch. They had great chemistry together. They were so adorable to watch that I felt like dying.
I did like the characters, although I found many of them to be quite annoying. But some characters started to grow on me there more I watched the show. I liked Ahn Min Hyuk the most. He had a refreshing personality and were often entertaining to watch. The most annoying character of them all was Oh Dol Pyu. Not only is he a stereotypical gay person which creates a really bad image, he is also a character with literally no redeeming qualities. There is nothing interesting or good about him. He is only there to be annoying and be a small obstacle for Do Bong Soon. His character serve no purpose and could have been easily removed from the show without affecting the plot. He is also sooo loud all the times and painful to watch.
I'm not sure how I feel about the whole Ahn Min Hyuk is gay thing. It's obviously just there for comedy. But because of that Ahn Min Hyuk gives out major bisexual vibes. And also there is no straight explanation as to why Ahn Min Hyuk and In Gook Doo had so much sexual tension. Like especially during the drunk scene. They honestly had good chemistry, which I do not think was the intention of the show.
I also did not like the abusive relationship that Do Bong Soon's parents had. It's only there to be funny, but I did not find it funny.
The show's main theme is comedy, but I often did not really find it to be that funny. There where some funny scenes sure, but mostly the funny scenes felt a bit dragged out or just too silly for my taste. Also, sometimes I'm not sure if I find like the correct things funny. For example I found it hilarious that Ahn Min Hyuk just goes around with a hoverboard while trying to be the coolest person ever. And he also have a hoverboard display in his office. Like that's just hilarious.
The production of the show is good. They clearly had quite a high budget. I don't really have any complains about the acting. It was just good. The show also had quite nice soundtrack with songs that often fit the scenes.
Although I did enjoy the show I just did not get that into it. I feel like it's a bit overrated. It definitely has flaws, but I can also understand why people like it. For me there were many times where I got annoyed at the show and found it uninteresting, but it might also just be not my type of show. I feel like their comedy style was not really my cup of tea. The only reason I give this series a score over 5 is because of the romance, which I really liked.
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