Shopaholic Louis

Despite its flaws in the storyline, I found myself loving this drama. The amnesia thing was very cliche but there were some points that made it unique.

The characterization of Louis was fine but it was annoying me sometimes because what he had was amnesia but he was acting like he went bonkers.

I LOVED THE OST EVEN THE INSTRUMENTALS AHHHH A+

I will definitely watch this again because it is such a feel good series. It made me feel warm and I loved every moment Bok Sil and Louis made.

BONUS POINTS FOR FRAMING AND COLOR GRADING!!! I am such a sucker for nice views and pastel colors.

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It was OK

This was such an odd series. I struggled to get past the first 4 episodes, when they are either getting beaten, robbed, scammed, etc. In fact, I think I skipped Ep 3 as it was getting to be too much. But once it hit its stride around Ep 5/6 it was cute and worth watching. Has one of the most eclectic OSTs ever, whoever curated the music was either crazy or a genius or both. I didn't care much for the ML or his character, but to each his own. And the FL character seemed forced and unrealistic. But the supporting cast was great with many familiar faces: Kim Gyu Chul is a standard in Historical Dramas and delivers another standout performance as the greedy Mr. Baek. "National Grandma" Kim Young Ok does her thing with aplomb (seeing her in heels was odd, to me, though). And the utter shock of seeing Chae Soo Bin in a cameo role at the end was wonderful (one of my fave actresses). What's funny is I'm also watching "Once Again" and many of these actors are in that show too, LOL. When they tied up all the loose ends (oddly in Ep 15 and not the finale) I wish they had addressed MaRi & InSung. The lead's ending was not unsatisfying without a wedding and seemed fitting. Rewatchability? I dont' think so, but I don't regret watching it.

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Unpopular opinion: Seo In Guk is terrible

My first moments with the drama were very positive. I thought to myself "wow there are such a crazy characters here that my cheeks will soon hurt from laughing". Yes .... the beginnings were good, but unfortunately it finished here. Till it's half, the drama was pretty cool, refreshing and had an interesting concept, but the weirdness and crazines of the characters started to bother me and I ended up disliking the drama.

Characters are the biggest problem here - not the story. Most of them are weird to the far extend, from clothes to behavior. A little weirdness in the show is never a bad thing, but when we have 5 or 6 characters who are constantly doing something out of this world - Hudson we have a problem 👎 The problem of repetition that ceases to be funny. This goes also to the dumb-silly faces that Louis presents throughout the series, 2-3 episodes with the occasional expressive facial expression? OK .... But 16 and it goes more and more per episode? Sorry but I can't take it.

Louis was too childish, Bok Shil was too pathetic, Cha Joong-Won was too weird, Baek Ma-Ri was too self absorbed. Only grandma Choi (holy Kim Young-Ok) was acceptable and nice to watch. I had never seen a drama where I didn't like any of leads or almost all secondary characters. It was my first drama with Seo In Guk and he was so bad that I will never come back to his performances. People praise him for doing an amazing job in the drama which I completly don't understand.

Shopacholic Louis isn't the best and in general I wouldn't recommend it. There are much better dramas out there.

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I enjoyed this show. Truly all the actors/actresses do a great job and the story is just unique enough to feel different even though there are some major drama tropes that are often used in the series. The music is different from what I expected because so much of it is in English and that was neat in some respects, but as I wasn't a fan of all the songs chosen also a bit distracting for me at times. But that isn't anything against the show...just my music preferences.

My only real issues with this drama is the "childlike" aspect of Louis. It was understandable at first because he was so "lost", but it felt like he never grew up and, for me, that got annoying. He could make adult decisions and do all the things that an adult needs to do (solve problems, care for his family, work, etc), but his mannerisms were often SO childlike that I found it uncomfortable.

Overall though, this is a drama that I liked and as I mentioned before, the entire cast is fantastic, so you really can't go wrong with this one.

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A Rom-Com that we've been searching for all our lives.

This drama was an absolute joy to watch. It was never boring or dragged. The writers really knew what they were doing with this storyline. Gotta give it to Seo In Guk for his acting chops and Nam Ji Hyun always comes through no matter what role she's playing.

While I successfully made it through the first 2 episodes, my anxiety had already hit the roof. I was always worried about the either of them getting scammed at any given moment, and guess who got scammed by the next two episodes *sigh*
The most lovable factor about this show was how they highlighted that money is important for survival but not important enough to let go of your principles.
Although it sounds like a heavy concept, every episode was outlined and overlapped with comedy. This subtlety has me in awe. This is the kind of drama I look forward to at the end of a stressful day.
Their kisses were magical and absolutely cute, although I will always hate the fact how the female lead is so shy, it grates on my nerves.
But then again it's a K-drama so I guess I'll just have to let it slide.
The second leads were good enough but I wish their character had some substance too. It would have been nice to see them evolve as well and not hung over one person, cause it sort of made me uninterested when it came to their scenes and how they pined over their crush.
The timing for unraveling the suspense was perfect, it didn't make me impatient enough to stop watching the drama or skip some scenes. The consistency of this drama definitely deserves an applause.
The last episode was way too boring though, as much as I'm a sucker for happy endings, this didn't make me all fluttery and happy, it seemed like just another episode. Since the other episodes were interesting enough maybe I expected more from the last one too.
All in all, this light hearted drama is worth watching and it'll make you wonder if watching it once was ebough.

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Skip to episode 11

Story idea/concept (8)
The idea is not groundbreaking, but the shopping concept is interesting.

Script (5)
The writer for some unfathomable reason stretched out the setup over 10 episodes, and then had to hurriedly wrap up the show.

Directing (8)
Was ok
Pacing (7)
Was weakened by the script writers choices

Acting (8)
Male lead always has the same facial expressions in every show I’ve seen him in, with limited range, but the other actors carried the drama.

Wardrobe (8)
Was well done and ok overall.

Sets/Locations (8)
Typical of Kdramas, thank goodness the product placement was not irritating as they can sometimes be in Kdramas

Skip to episode 11, in my opinion that’s when the show finally finds direction. Everything that happens prior is rehashed in subsequent episodes anyway so you don’t really miss much, because the male lead is highly irritating in the early episodes.

Episodes 1 to 10 should have been covered in 3 episodes, episodes 11 to 16 should have been spread out to 13 episodes.

Rewatch Value (2)

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I've just finished watching Shopping King Louis. This review is my personal opinion, judged by the divided mentioned factors.

What to expect from this drama:
This Drama has a few cliches I won't disclose in this review, however, none of them did I find harming to the show. You'll also be surprised by the fact that the good guy wins the girl, not the one who treats her poorly - is that a spoiler? Ugh, I guess you could guess it from the summary. The drama is lighthearted, simple, and easy to watch. Comedy and romance are the core genres and portrayed well. The romance is especially cute and unique.

My overall score of this show is 7, which is, in my opinion, an above mediocre score. Here's why...

My first area that I'll cover is the story. The plot is very simple, lighthearted and easy to watch. Of course, there are some cliches placed in some episodes but overall I think the plot handles it quite well. My personal opinion of the story is positive. Whenever I see something that has to do with amnesia I hesitate but this drama uses this element in a non-cliche/annoying way. The characters stay true to themselves throughout the drama and undergo individual character development. The characters, as well as the story, is well thought out without any major, story-destroying plot holes. In fact, I didn't find any plot holes at all.

The acting in this drama is good, but not the best I've witnessed out there. However, I must say Seo In Guk portrays his character adequately and stays consistent in his acting throughout the drama. The characters are fun and each actor does a great job to stay constant, hence my rating falls on 6.0.

In regards to the music in this drama, I'm fairly surprised. Whether it's the magic touch of Monsta X or something else, I don't know. What I do know is that I love the music in this show - and not only the main ost. I'm sure you'll enjoy it as well.

My rewatch value is 5.5, which is based on the fact that I rarely fully rewatch dramas. If I'm rewatching something I only watch few certain episodes. So, I've set it to 5.5 as an "Maybe I'll return but I'm not sure" kind of score. Vague but true.

You'll like this if...
- You want something unique/fresh in the romcom (romance/comedy) genre.
- You enjoy a simple lighthearted story that comes in a complete package.
- Seo In Guk acting like the cutest kid ever.
- You enjoy a unique story from time to time.

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One of the best romantic comedies that I've ever seen!

I found this series on viki.com and once I started watching it I couldn't stop. People talk about having a Netflix Marathon hangover...well, I had a Shopaholic King Louie hangover. It was so good. Every episode has supremely funny parts and the sad parts are so sincerely acted that I felt for every character, even the ones that weren't the "good guys".

The main leads did an amazing job with the acting. The actor portraying Louie showed Louie's character as a well loved but protected grandson with sincerity. I felt for the poor rich boy and felt even more once he loses his memory. The relationship that develops between him and the main female lead is heart warming and tender. Both are innocent in the ways of the world and very trusting of others. The supporting characters were also well acted out and gave this series a real ensemble feel, each contributing to the success of the show.

The script was well written with funny scenes I had never seen in other shows I've watched. It felt very unique and warm. It was really a joy to watch. I loved how the American music that was selected fit each scene so perfectly. The playful scene dancing at the beach was filled with fun, wonder and innocent pleasures.

For anyone who contributed to the making of this series....thank you from the bottom of my heart. You really made me happy. Signed, an American Fan.

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cringe but adorable

if you are looking for something joyful with no complicated story. then you must watch this one, the plot is typical and predictable, they put some plot twists but they were ridiculous to me, but the characters, even the side ones are very enjoyable and funny, the older women in this drama is what kept me watching, not your typical evil judgmental women, they all very nice and hilarious, the main couple are both dump, i loved them so much, even the third wheel man is cute. but there is so many scenes that does not make sense, just be prepared for ton amount of cringe

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MY PRECIOUSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Shopping King Louie was an interesting watch, for sure. Despite the cliches and the obligatory break-ups, I still really loved the drama and its over the top humor. The less interesting parts like the politics and evil schemes happened extremely quickly and were over before I could remind myself that I usually hate those kinds of scenes. During the gloomy part of the drama, the atmosphere was still really fluffy and light, which was a very big plus for me, and I tend to feel very down when the atmosphere in a drama is depressing. While I was extremely annoyed by the “I’ve always hated your guts” speech that Bok Sil told Louie, it was never brought up again, to my great relief and extreme confusion. I have to commend the writers for pulling the double amnesia stunt, because the episode that followed was so entertaining and cheesy that my insides practically melted. The main leads themselves were extremely entertaining, especially Louie, who proved to me that femininity can be extremely attractive in a guy. While the last 4 episodes were mainly filler and contributed pretty much nothing to the plot, I somehow still enjoyed myself watching them. This drama had my absolute favorite most incompetent viillain and one of my favorite second lead romance, if only for the extremely childish farting scenes that happened between the characters. I would recommend this drama because of the pure joy I felt watching it. As long as you don’t take it too seriously, you can have lots of laughs while viewing this wonderful drama.

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Delightful little gem

This was a delightful easy watch. Kind of feel-good, with small warm-hearted moments and humorous tidbits, all neatly weaved into an overarching story.
Even if some things feels a bit dated, and there are some familiar tropes, they are not so domineering that they spoil the overall impression.
One of the things that made me really like this drama is Louis' sincere and whole-heartedly love for Bok Sil. Even if his character was a bit "over-the-top" silly sometimes, he was very like-able (if you've seen Prison Playbook some of his "moments" and body language reminded me of "Loony").

Brief synopsis from my memory:
Chaebol grandson Louis has lived a protected and spoiled life after his parents died when he was small, living abroad killing his time shopping. When his grandmother suddenly falls ill, he rushes back home, but ends up in a car accident on the way to the hospital, and is then assumed dead.
Rural girl Bok Sil has lived a simple life in the mountains taking care of her elderly grandmother. When gran suddenly passes, Bok Sil leaves for Seoul to find her younger brother.
She looses all her belongings, and ends up penniless in Seoul, her only source to money being a ginseng root which she manages to sell to Cha Joong Won, a boss in Louis' family company.
Bok Sil then crosses paths with Louis who has lost his memories, but is wearing her brother's clothes. She then ends up taking care of him in the hopes of him getting his memories back, thus helping her find her brother.
They develop a deep bond, but Louis is not the only one falling for Bok Sil – so is Cha Joong Won.
Will Louis regain his memories, and will Bok Sil find her brother?

The cast:
The main leads were convincing, and acted with emotions and sincerity. As mentioned already, I found Louis to be a bit "over-the-top" sometimes, but the portrayal and acting by Seo In Guk was spot on. Another character that was a bit exaggerated for my liking, was Cha Joong Won. How Yoon Sang Hyun managed to portray this character so convincingly I consider a testament to his acting skills! LOL.
Nam Ji Hyun who gave life to Bok Sil did so very satisfactorly, making her actions and emotions seem very genuine.
There are a lot of other well-known faces in this production as well, pretty much all delivering strong performances.

All in all I found this to be the drama I didn't know I needed to watch - overall nurturing positive feelings.

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Subverts from chaebol meets poor girl story and puts in interesting and quirky twists and characters

They have good chemistry but not amazing chemistry.

They don’t have the slow build up of romantic feelings. I feel like they already broke the wall of romantic gestures from the get go. So when they kiss, it doesn’t feel as romantic.

There’s a lot of funny scenes so I was never bored. But they weren’t laugh out loud funny. It was just little chuckles.

They revealed everything too early. 2nd half felt like it dragged a bit.

However, the good thing about this drama is that it always manages to be funny throughout a lot of the show because all the characters even the evil ones are somehow really quirky. The ending made me cry because it was so heartwarming.

I would not rewatch because I now know what happens and the romantic scenes were not romantic enough but overall it was a good watch.

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