Are You Human?

Didn't expect much and sadly didn't get much

Was initially interested because there aren't that much AI stories in kdrama and the synopsis seemed good. And if at first, over the course of the first 4 or 5 episodes, I thoroughly enjoyed the story and the main couple, the plot quickly starts losing steam and feels rather empty. Let's not talk about cheap plot devices that feel very Deus ex machina with the chairman's fake dementia turned real two or three episodes later. Human Nam Shin's return, while well executed, arrives too late for viewers to actually like him which is a shame because there was so much potential. Also didn't like his character treatment: between him being portrayed as bratty, borderline psychopathic when it's the result of his traumas and his "redemption" arc spanning over the 2nd half of the finale, it's lost potential. As for the chairman and his not so loyal right hand Seo, they make very caricature-y villains, definitely destroying the drama's dramatic side. What should break the viewer's heart feels cartoon-ey and over played. The female lead seriously lacks development as well and while she isn't necessarily that bad to watch while she supports Nam Shin III, her behaviour starts being annoying in the last episodes, once again killing the dramatic effect. Seo Yena's storyline wasn't bad in itself but it was constantly coinciding either with bad plot devices or with the clowney acting of the bad guys. Overall, just like Human Nam Shin character, it's wasted potential. The only saving grace of the drama was Seo Kang Joon's acting, along with Ji Young Hoon's character. Overall disappointed with characters treatment and how loose the plot was. It's not an entirely bad watch in itself but if you start this drama, don't go in with much expectations.

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A fresh unique addictive storyline, with kang joon's brilliance

AI can be a controversial topic to say the least, specially when it comes to a proper human type robot. They tried to show the reasonable outcomes of having AI, but I think they went a bit far with this futuristic stuff. I mean the farthest we went with a full fledge robot in 2019 was that idiot Sophia. Then developing such an amazing invention, in like 1999 is really really mind boggling. Its quite far away from reality hence, I did not take the drama serious from the very beginning.

However, as the drama proceeded, we got some interesting twist and turns. The characters did fair enough jobs; a special mention to the legend Seo Kang Joon himself, who did an astonishing task potraying both the characters. I genuinely hated his other villainous character and adored the heroic one.

Now lets talk about specific merits and demerits.

The decent aspects:
+ A new type of story, it did make me laugh at times and the couple looked pretty together.
+ Acting was done well by most of the characters, the grandfather also did a good job with his hated personality.
+ Not gonna lie, the drama itself was quite addictive. I could not stop myself from watching the next episode.
+ Although, it was a bit stretched, the story did not felt heavy and burdensome to watch.


!!!!!!SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!
+ I loved the fact that they implied how corrupt a system could be. Honestly, even in Austria the CEO knew what the mother was doing and her exact plans. And how he gave money to her for his own benefit. His technique for fooling people with dementia thing was also brilliant.
!!!!!!SPOILER ENDS!!!!!!


The wrong aspects:
- First of all, if the female lead was taken advantage of. I mean, she was shown all powerful and stuff (for empowerment), but she literally acted like a scaredy cat at times.
- The bad Nam-Shin reflected being extremely mean and rude without any reason. Although, I do understand what the the poor boy went through, doing that won't help either.
- Their were some truly questionable decisions made by the mother. Quite literally that button had no use whatsoever. Regardless I get it, it was her greed and love for her son.
- Something which did offend me as a Computer Science student was the fact that the Robot made some veryyyyyyyyyyy Human decisions. Say with me COMPUTERS.DON'T.HAVE.PRACTICAL.THINKING.CAPABILITIES.

!!!!!!SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!
- The thing I hated the most was this human-robot 'romantic' relationship. And man where the hell did he get the tears from at the end??? XD I know relationship ain't all about sex, and maybe they can even have sex just not the children O-O and it doesn't matter to me. But what matters is authentic feelings. Whatever intelligence you give robots CAN'T truly love someone. But okay if she can live with, what can I say.
!!!!!!SPOILER ENDS!!!!!!


!!!!!!SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!
Now for a quick tip. It's just my opinion so please don't take it personally or something:
I would have LOVED if the bad Nam-shin felt guilty and hence try to befriend the female lead. Instead of restoring the robot (which idk how they did, he legit had died) he tries to comfort the woman.
They could have added 3-4 more episodes making it a total of 40. In that, they could possibly add this miserably bad Nam-shin and the female lead sharing their traumas with each other and helping each other out. The poor boy also deserves happiness ya know?
And they could probably then have an ending together.
Or if you ask me maybe like both of them walking on the beach together laughing, as the scene ends. Now it is on you whether you think them as friends or as lovers ;-)
(yeah I like these endings and everyone judges me for it)
!!!!!!SPOILER ENDS!!!!!!

If you want to watch a lighthearted attention-grabbing drama, it is recommended. However if you want a tough, emotional and relatable storyline then maybe not.
But who knows this drama can genuinely pleasantly surprise you.

Sorry for this long rant, go on your kdrama journey. Fighting!

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When AI and Emotions Collide

You know that feeling when a drama ends, and you just sit there staring at the screen, wondering how to put your emotions into words? Yeah, Are You Human Too? did that to me. I went into it with moderate expectations—I love sci-fi, but I wasn’t expecting that much sci-fi from this. And I think, that's why It turned out to be a pretty good watch.

The Story & Pacing :
The pacing was surprisingly solid, and I liked how the backstory of each character made sense. It didn’t feel like anyone was thrown in just for the sake of it. The drama balanced its emotional depth with intrigue well, and I was invested the whole time. But while the premise was fascinating, it also left me in a dilemma.

Seo Kang Joon – The Heart & Soul of the Drama :
One thing I have to highlight is Seo Kang Joon’s performance. He absolutely NAILED this double role. Playing both the cold, damaged real Nam Sin and the kind, almost-too-perfect robot Nam Sin III? That’s not easy, but he pulled it off flawlessly. The way he subtly changed his expressions, posture, and even aura between the two characters was just chef’s kiss.

The Romance – Cute but Conflicted :
Nam Sin 3 (our AI-powered male lead) and So Bong had undeniable chemistry. Their romance was sweet, touching, and had that heart-fluttering quality. But at the same time, I couldn’t stop questioning everything.

One moment, I was fully on board, feeling all the emotions as So Bong fell for this kind, selfless AI who treated her with genuine care. And the next, I was like, "Wait, what is this girl doing? He’s a robot! Pull yourself together!" Still, I understood how she got emotionally attached—how Nam Sin III made her feel seen, how he always put her first. She knew he didn’t have real emotions, yet she cared about his feelings anyway. I felt everything right alongside her.

But then came the big, lingering questions. Is it okay for a human to be with a robot for life, as long as they’re happy? Will that happiness last forever? What happens after? No one around her seemed to be asking these questions, and that was frustrating.

So Bong –
She started out as such a badass. A former athlete, a skilled bodyguard—she was a fighter through and through. And then... the drama just kind of forgot that. As the story progressed, the entire skill set just disappeared. It was disappointing.

Also, her continued friendship with reporter Jo after everything that happened? Yeah, I couldn’t accept that.

The Ending – A Time Skip & Unanswered Questions :
The drama gave us a technically happy ending, but honestly, I would’ve preferred a bittersweet one that actually made sense. The one-year time skip felt like a lazy way to wrap things up.
Why was only the main villain arrested while his right-hand man—who also tried to kill Nam Sin —just roamed free?
Real Nam Sin’s - I loved how his character was presented, his redemption arc had so much potential, but the time skip rushed through it. We were left to fill in the gaps ourselves.
And that last scene—tears from a robot?? Was that a new feature or something? :D

This drama made me wonder—what is the limit for a robot? Should AI be able to experience every human emotion, like love, jealousy, anger? If so, wouldn’t that make them too human? Where do we draw the line?

Final Thoughts –
Despite all my questions (and occasional frustrations), Are You Human Too? was a really interesting watch. The pacing was good, the romance was unique, and Seo Kang Joon’s performance alone made it worth it. But at the same time, it left me with more questions than answers—especially about AI, emotions, and what it really means to be human.

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It’s been such a long time since I have last watched any type of Asian drama. I really want to get back into it, and start pumping out reviews, but I haven’t found a drama that really caught my attention. That’s one of the reasons I haven’t watched a drama in over a year, I hadn’t seen anything that pulled me in. But I thought I would come back, scroll through some shows, and just put one on and that’s when I ended up with “Are You Human Too?”

With the success of “West World”, it was just a matter of time before people started making more AI themed dramas. I’m sure “West World” wasn’t the first AI based television show, nor is “Are You Human Too?” the first AI based drama in Asia. But with the popularity of West World sweeping the world, it make’s sense that AI is going to start popping up as the new it thing in dramas. “Are You Human Too?” focuses on the relationships between AI (Nam Shin I through Nam Shin III) and the people around him. I actually went into this drama blind. I had no idea what the plot was, or who was in this drama. Other than seeing the poster, I knew absolutely nothing about this drama. I obviously knew it was about AI since the poster gives that away, but I never read the synopsis or the cast list before hand. I think that’s a pretty good way to go into a drama. It keeps you open-minded about whatever is going to happen within the script.

“Are You Human Too?” was a pretty good drama. As things are with me right now, it was a pretty good time. Being the first drama I have watched in a year, it needed to pull me in, and I think it did. It pulled me in and makes me want to watch more dramas, so that’s pretty good. I would say it was a pretty decent start to coming back to dramas. I’m the type of person who enjoys melodramas so I guess I had a little bit of that sprinkled into this drama for me, but I am going to be honest I never cried once. Now this is pretty big news because I’m a big old baby, and I cry a lot during the shows, but for some reason this didn’t make me cry at all. I assume it made other people cry, but it just never got to me. I was never truly invested in any of the characters other than Nam Shin III. Literally everyone else in the drama, could of did anything and or lets say died, and I would of been like “uh huh they died,” and shrugged it off. I felt like that character never really gave me a reason to feel for them. I don’t know, they just never really connected with me.

The acting in “Are You Human Too?” was pretty good. I never once thought someone’s acting was so bad that I couldn’t watch, but that acting was so good that I felt like they deserved awards either. They were all just well, pretty decent. I feel like that’s the theme with this drama, to me at least, everything is pretty decent. The concept, the story, the acting, the execution, the editing, the music, it was all just pretty decent to me. I guess this drama has the curse of being the first drama I have watched in a long time. I have higher expectations from what I want and what I expect to feel or see in dramas, because I want them to pull me back into the world I was so deeply invested in for years. However, this drama did give me hope that perhaps I will fall back in love with binge watching dramas for days and days, because I did watch it in pretty much a few days. I will be honest, however, that I did find myself more preoccupied with other things, because it wasn’t all that interesting to me. I don’t know, it just couldn’t hold my attention that long, and I will admit I skipped through a few episodes because I was like ” can you please just do something of importance ” or something along those lines. But that goes back to me not really feeling connections or emotions with the characters other than one.
Overall I thought “Are You Human Too?” was a pretty decent drama. It wasn’t mind blowing or life changing. It was just a drama that I personally think could be played on in the background and you don’t have to actually pay all that much attention to. Now I know I’m probably alone in thinking that, since when watching the drama on Dramafever, it had a pretty high rating. People seem to love it. But I always find myself against the crowd anyways when it comes to dramas that I love and dramas that I hate. This drama doesn’t fit into either of those categories, it has been just… alright. An alright drama that perhaps boosted my interest to get back into dramas so that’s pretty good. I think maybe, it would be a pretty good beginner drama for people. It had the sense of “This is my first drama” kind of drama feel for me. So there is always that as a positive. The rest, to be honest was just not memorable, I literally don’t remember any of the OST, which is a pretty important to me. Listening to OSTs after the fact should rush back memories of the drama and have me remember things I loved about it, but the OST for this drama isn’t even memorable itself. I feel like I am flip flopping with my thoughts on this drama, but I guess I would say that I think it started a spark in me to get into dramas again so I thank it for that.

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When a Robot Feels, and a Human Fights to Exist

A Robot Who Wanted to Live, A Human Who Wanted to Matter

First, Okay I felt really sad for Robot Shin. It hurt that his mom, who raised him for 20 years, put something as cruel as a kill switch inside him. How could she? At the same time, I can understand her fear—if a car can be hacked, then Shin could be hacked too and turned into a weapon in someone else’s hands. But even knowing that, her choice never sat right with me.

What frustrated me more was how everyone treated Robo Shin like he didn’t matter. As if Human Shin was the only one who truly existed, and Robo Shin was just there to fill in. That was hard to watch. The only comforting part was when he found his own world with So Bong. With her, he wasn’t a shadow or a substitute, he was simply himself.

.......................................................BUT BUT BUT ..............................................what i related to the most................................................................
I understood Human Shin’s side. Imagine having someone out there who isn’t your twin or lookalike but literally you. We already feel insecure when siblings get more attention—now imagine a copy of yourself who might actually be better at everything.

For 20 years, Human Shin longed for his mother, while Robo Shin had her by his side. He tried to win his grandfather’s approval, but the old man wanted the robot to succeed him. Even his best friend once said, “Even if Shin never wakes up, we’ll keep up the plan with the robot.” It felt like if Human Shin vanished, nobody would even look for him. And that is terrifying—being gone and not having a single person notice.

On top of that, people couldn’t even tell the two apart. Sometimes they acted like there was no difference at all. That blurred line itself threatened Human Shin’s existence. Because if others can’t recognize you, and they even prefer your duplicate, then what are you left with?

We humans are imperfect, and that’s where the real beauty lies. Human Shin was never weak—he was just human. He worked hard, carried heavy burdens, and still tried his best to protect the people he loved. More than anything, he dreamed of being free one day, of living with a little happiness instead of chains.

He always said he didn’t care about the company or succeeding his grandfather. Money, power, and status never mattered to him. What he wanted was simple—love and happiness. That’s it. I was glad he had a friend like Young Hoon by his side, but even he, along with Shin’s mother, focused only on preserving Shin’s position. Did anyone ever stop to ask what Shin truly wanted? If they had, they’d know he never wished to stay in that cruel cage in the first place.

No one thought of taking him away from all that toxic politics, of letting him live the simple life he longed for. Maybe with his greedy grandfather around it wasn’t possible, but still, the thought hurts. Seo Jong and the chairman were so obsessed with the company—they could have fought each other all they wanted. Young Hoon could have chosen his own side too. But Shin… he should have been allowed to walk away.

All he ever needed were honest words and sincere comfort from the people he loved. If his mom, Young Hoon, or even his grandfather had just sat with him and truly listened, told him that he mattered—not as an heir, not as a responsibility, but as a person—I don’t think he would have hated Robo Shin at all. Instead of feeling replaced or threatened, he might have accepted him as another part of his world. At the end of the day, Human Shin wasn’t fighting against the robot… he was fighting against the silence, the lack of warmth, and the constant feeling that his existence wasn’t enough.

When Human Shin and Robo Shin’s eyes met in that final moment, and Robo Shin was shot—I couldn’t stop crying. There was so much unsaid between them, yet in that one look they understood each other completely. It made me wish for a season 2, one where both of them get to exist side by side, without the cruelty of politics and expectations, without having to compete for love. A season where they both get the happiness they deserved—living freely, and living kindly..

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What if the mist fulfilling love relationship is from AI

If one is able to put aside the fact that, at the difference of “I’m not a robot”, or “my holo love”, this love story is about falling in love with an artificial intelligence, as the better self of a spoiled heir… this is a really beautiful love story. Albeit a bit disrupting in so far we are rooting for a robot../
The beginning of the drama is a bit slow and off-putting, and does not fairly reflect what it going to be about… Seo kang joon is absolutely perfect in playing dual polar characters, an unredeemable bad brat and his perfect AI alter ego, self improving throughout the drama to the point of experiencing emotions…
How nice it would be to benefit by truly unconditional love and support could be the underlying theme…
On the contrary to the majority, I don’t believe that the Skj we see in the end with the Ai tech friends is the bad guy after he has become good, I think it is the former repaired Version, looking at his simplified self on the beach, now able to shed tears…
All in all, this drama is really smart and leaves a lasting impression, also thanks to a brilliant Skj

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I had great expectations of this completely pre-produced drama, despite the worrying delays in getting it into a viewing schedule. The story looks interesting, the cast was pretty and it seemed to continue the conversation about humanity and artificial intelligence started so compellingly by the earlier I'm Not a Robot.

However, four episodes in (this show suffers from the annoying episode break-up they use to slip ads into kdramas), I've had to drop it. The plotting is pedestrian and the characterisation slapdash, which is really unusual for a kdrama. I started watching Episode 4 (7-8), wandered away and realised I wasn’t even watching it anymore. I was that bored.

The show is basically the standard ‘corporation as saeguk royal family’ thing with the overbearing King, the scheming Prime Minister, the arranged marriage, the spoiled Princess and the impoverished female lead interloper caught up in their schemes. The robot almost seems incidental as though it’s their ‘hook’ for making the same show they always make.

Everyone is raving about Seo Kang-joon’s performance as the Chaebol Prince/Android double but to me it’s all over the place (although a lot of that may be the writing). They’ve also given him this infuriating tic of winking when he’s being a human lie detector, which just comes off as stupid. Gong Seung-yeon is also uninspiring in her role as a disenchanted former fighter and current bodyguard but again this is due to the writing and I feel the actor can't be blamed for doing the best in such a poorly-constructed role.

It does not help that season 3 of the far-superior Humans has started in the UK and it’s actually exploring the themes this show is glossing over.

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I was so worried I would not like this drama before I started but my worries quickly dissolved with each episode. Waiting every week for this drama to air was torture and on Mondays and Tuesdays I found myself waiting for the day to end so I could watch my beloved Nam Sin III. ;)

What I love most about this drama is the characters and the actors who played them. Seo Kang Joon was spectacular. He made Nam Sin III robotic but in the most adorable way! Whenever Nam Sin III smiled I literally melted. Even the way he blinked was so spot on. I'm not sure how the writers managed to make a robot interesting,hilarious, and completely endearing but that's exactly what they did. Never a more pure hearted main male lead, literally a puppy dog. And of course Nam Sin the human was such a brat and I wanted to slap his beautiful face so many times. Seo Kang Joon played the two roles so well from the way he stood to the way he spoke. I was also impressed with Gong Seung Yeon as Kang So Bong. Even though her character was supposed to be annoying sometimes, Seung Yeon played her in a way where even when I was super frustrated with her, I still didn't dislike her character. I also really enjoyed Park Young Kyoo as Nam Sin's grandfather. He was really entertaining to watch and I liked the way the writers blurred his character so I was never really sure whether I was supposed to like him or hate him. I enjoyed all of the cast but lastly I want to mention, Lee Joon Hyuk as Ji Yeong Hoon. I think his character easily could have become super boring but he totally wasn't and I think that was due to Lee Joon Hyuk's acting. He was sort of a father figure to both Nam Sin III and Nam Sin and it was encouraging to see the way he protected them both. It was also so refreshing that he always said and did the smartest thing. His character was brave and loyal and level headed. Exactly the kind of character this dramatic drama needed.

The writers/director did a really good job of keeping the story going and shifting the momentum of the story in ways that I didn't notice until later on. 18 episodes can be a huge mistake but in this case every episode was deliberate and necessary. Also, who would have thought that a robot could work as the main character! That's honestly what I was most worried about but somehow Kang So Bong and Nam Sin III were cuteness overload nearly every episode. Despite logic, I ship them so hard. I also really appreciated Nam Sin III's journey as a robot learning what humans are like and learning to stick up for himself. It broke my heart when others abused him and took advantage of him but with Kang So Bong's help he came to think of himself as more than just metal parts. Watching his growth and self acceptance was inspiring.

I really enjoyed most of the ost's but I loved The Longing Dance and Milagro. They really added to the intensity of the drama.

There were a few plot points that bugged me but not enough to ruin my enjoyment or the flow.
I would definitely recommend this and am so sad that it's over!

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I'm not usually a fan of suspenseful sci-fi dramas like these, but I loved this! The show did a good job of creating three-dimensional characters with both flaws and redeeming qualities. I have so much respect for an actor who can play two completely different characters in the same show; Seo Kang-joon did a phenomenal job. I was similarly impressed with the character Ji Young Hoon, played by Lee Joon Hyuk. I usually hate the loyal henchman character, but he kept it fascinating.

While I wouldn't listen to the soundtrack outside of watching the show, this is one of the few K-dramas I have watched where I felt the music was spot on for each dramatic moment. Everything was carefully orchestrated for each mood. The plot was always thrilling, with actual twists and turns that I did not expect. I would say that the justifications for some of those plot twists were a bit shaky, but I was kept from losing interest by the way that the plot actually helped to develop the characters, their motivations, and their backstories. I generally hate suspenseful dramas because they usually have twists that do not reveal anything about the characters, but this was a refreshing change.

At the most basic level, I would say that this drama's strength is really its characters and its acting. I have never seen a K drama make me sympathize with so many "villains" and doubt so many "heroes."

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