Once upon a Time... in My Heart Episode 1

4.0/10 - Sometimes all you really need is cheesy mafia romance! Guilty pleasure found!

Sometimes all you really need is cheesy mafia romance! Boy does it deliver with that dramatic opener!! Though that has to be the stupidest questions "Why do you cry?" Um, how about that gun!!! Poor girl! Enter the first love and her demise. Daniel shooting Botan. (Was anyone else creeped out about all those men leering at the prospect of her death?!?) Which then leads to the silly introduction to the adorable lookalike across the water!

Oh, boy was it silly! I mean comments like Fah and Dr. Itt Started dating before she had breasts . . . I don't think she meant that or that it technically counts that way . . . you know. Childhood love you grow up with. Their pervert minds scare me! I mean these dramas are all about innocent love. I will never get used to the innocent to dirty quality of Thai dramas!! Ha-ha!

Though anyone else get "the vibes" when the head surgery/owner said his daughter was learning under Doctor Itt. Yeah, I'm gonna say it. She was learning A LOT under him. Hint. Hint. The fool proposes to Doctor Kwan! Without dumping Fah or even a slight heads up! So that she may or may not lash out at him during a press conference. Hmmm. I get that it's dramatic and all, but this reeks of character and writing stupidity. All for the sake of drama I guess. Not to mention that the camera shot shows them clearly seeing each other. How can this Dr. Itt perform surgeries if he's blind!?!

Ladies and gentleman they're trying to channel Jackie Chan!! Introducing tie versus sword. Excuse me while I pick myself off the floor from bouts of insane laughter. At least Daniel looks sexy doing it. Hmmmmmmmm. Yep. Man candy has sucked me in.

Ooooo, ex-best friend. Forget the black book of secrets. I think we have a tragic tale of a love triangle leading with betrayal and ending with murder! AT least judging how he ran after Fah. The leader of the White Tigers, Chen Min, must have had romantic interests in Botan. I bet that Daniel and Chen Min were childhood friends. Botan got between them maybe? You know that tragic romance that leads to the death of a bromance!

Poop. So how long has it been since dad and his brother were murdered? I thought the guy who told him it was the Golden Dragons, was there at the airport. I think the opening shot showed him there for Botan's death . . . so when did his family get murdered? Or when did any of these events happen!!

Ah, my pet peeve. The never need loading gun. Six shots should have been max. *sighs* Of course they keep firing never have to put in a clip, but then later on in the episode suddenly for dramatic affect the gun runs out! No bullets!! (See my comments later on when it happens in the timeline of the episode notes.)

I love that her parents are so sweet and in love. Also, not clueless about her emotional state. It's nice that these won't be vanishing parents or evil ones. I love it when the kind girl has wonderful parents. It's just annoying having leads with bad parents and bad relationships. I approve of Fah's friend too! She stands up for Fah and they're clearly friends. Not frenemies.

Ha-ha! coming off the never ending bullet fight and that transpires all over Japan (gun, gun!) Daniel is all like I'm gonna forget I'm injured and bleeding while this magical stalker scene happens. Forget supplies to stop my bleeding! Queue romantic music whilst I marvel that this girl looks like the dead lover I shot. I love how he's having this romantic moment in his head and she's convinced he's an insane creep and she (smartly) is making tracks!!

Hmmm, I hope Daniel isn't trying to win her at this point in time. That's one heck of a way to win her. Keep stalking her, get her shot at, and then threaten to shoot her yourself! I mean when he asks her "How do you know I'm not a good person?" Fah is a boss coming straight out with the whole issue of him threatening and kidnapping her. What a solid answer.

Wow, at first I really liked Fah's friend. (No really look at my comment above.) Yeah, Puifai. They took her annoying too far. See Puifai has a great base and I wonder why they would make her so suddenly stupid. One monent she's a boss, smart, and amazing freind. The next, yes she's drunk but it's continuing, she's a sniveling basic annoying character. Not to mention that Chen Biao has had my attention since the boat docks. Still I like the coupling setup Puifia and Biao, I just don't like that they made her that annoying for Biao as well. Oh, well.

I think there's so many opportunities to escape, but we're in dramaland. The female is too weak to think of I don't know going to the Thia embassy and going straight home. Or staying angry at the guy who ruined your life. That's okay, she's here for the man candy too!!

Thankfully I'm willing to accept that. No it's not just for the man candy. Maybe. Okay, Daneil's cuteness--absolute hotness--doesn't hurt. Nor the fact that I'm clearly watching for them to have a romance. Still . . . I would like more from the Fah. I hate that the ex-jerk Dr. Itt called Fah childish. The thing is being peppy and happy is not childish. I do like that his Kwan stood up for Fah. She knows there's some sketchy stuff happening. Plus, she's a smart woman. Kwan knows she stole Dr. Itt from Fah. Saying that you don't want people to think badly of how they got together doesn't make the wrong doing gone.

At least the Ugly Duckling dramas prepared me for the bad audio and . . . interesting music choices. Though going from rock'n'roll guitar, Italian romance, dramatic Japanese style, and basically all over the place actually fits this over the top drama.

So. What do I think? I think I found my guilty pleasure drama! Hot men! Oh, body that's a check. Mafia/gang themes of romance and drama! Yes!!! Totally perfectly timed romantic things to happen! Check! Since this is a guilty pleasure I am given a free pass to swoon and not roll my eyes! ^_- I'm in to the characters and the beginning of the background story that will slowly be revealed. I do find the second lead a tragic loss to annoying BFF trope for the lead. Fah could have easily been annoying and killed this drama, but I think the actress and writers make her genuinely cute and how could you not like her!

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