Just watch it for the beautiful cast
This drama started well, I was so in love with it because it was so refreshing that i didn't bother sleeping because i wanted to know what happened next.However, the last 2 epsiodes was trash. It was like they got out of material (not that they had any to begin with) but because they wanted to make it the "mandatory" 16 episodes they decided to put a whole bunch of nothings together.
The cast did a good job though, kudos to everyone of them.
They had a good idea planning a story around plastic surgery and how much society bullies people that are not their standard of beauty but it's like they lost their focus along the way.
The first 10 episodes was very good and it excited me but things started going downhill from episode 11 then episode 15 and 16 was just a waste of time.
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The first 6 episodes were really slow, even compared to "A Love so Beautiful". I'm not into watching the ugliness of society (be that Korean, or American) for extended periods of time, I was ready to drop the drama multiple times for that reason, but the entire plastic surgery thing kept me interested just long enough to reach episode 7 and then things turned for the better. I realized that I really started liking the cast & the romance was getting more and more interesting. There was no humor at all in the first half, but there were quite a few funny moments later on too. As usual in a drama like this I expected the worst from the love triangle, but that never happened, that's always a giant plus. I don't really care about bromances, but this one here was not much worse than in Goblin. I also like how it ended. Yes others have commented on how many secondary plotlines are unfinished & how great a second season would be, but I disagree. I'm genuinely afraid of what the plotline in that hypothetical second season could be. I feel that they followed the still ongoing webcomic too closely up until the ending, that's why we had all that melodramatic setup in the beginning that couldn't really lead anywhere in 16 episodes and honestly I'm not that curious about their resolution, feeling that it's better not to know, I'm content that I got the happy ending that I wanted & the topic of plastic surgery & the psychology of plastic surgery were sufficiently explored.The OST was just there, here I am writing this 8 hours after finishing the series & I don't recall a single song, or track. Not memorable at all.
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good
My ID is Gangnam Beauty is a 2018 South Korean drama adapted from the popular webtoon of the same name. It follows the story of Kang Mi-rae, a young woman who, after years of being bullied for her looks, decides to undergo plastic surgery before starting university. She hopes that her new appearance will give her the confidence to live a normal, happy life. However, Mi-rae quickly discovers that beauty alone cannot shield her from judgment, gossip, and the complicated realities of human relationships.One of the most compelling aspects of the drama is how it addresses South Korea’s intense beauty standards. The term “Gangnam Beauty” is used pejoratively to describe someone whose beauty appears “artificial” due to cosmetic surgery. The show doesn’t shy away from portraying how society can be both obsessed with and critical of physical appearance, leaving women caught in a no-win situation. Through Mi-rae’s struggles, we see that external changes cannot automatically fix deep-rooted insecurities.
Im Soo-hyang, who plays Kang Mi-rae, delivers a nuanced performance. She captures the vulnerability of someone who has been emotionally scarred by years of ridicule, while also showing the slow growth of confidence as Mi-rae learns to value herself for more than her looks. Cha Eun-woo, portraying Do Kyung-seok, is equally engaging. His character is a stoic, handsome classmate who sees beyond appearances and treats Mi-rae with quiet sincerity. Their developing romance feels genuine and sweet, providing a warm contrast to the drama’s heavier themes.
Supporting characters also shine. Jo Woo-ri’s portrayal of Hyun Soo-ah, the seemingly perfect yet manipulative rival, is particularly noteworthy. She adds complexity to the story, showing how envy and insecurity can lurk behind a flawless façade. The friendships and rivalries among the students feel realistic, mixing lighthearted campus moments with biting social commentary.
The pacing is generally smooth, with the drama balancing romance, slice-of-life, and social critique. Some episodes lean more heavily into melodrama, but they remain grounded in relatable emotions. The script often uses humor to diffuse tension, making it easy to binge while still provoking thought. The soundtrack complements the atmosphere well, with soft ballads and upbeat tracks underscoring key emotional beats.
Perhaps the drama’s greatest strength is its underlying message: self-worth should come from within, not from meeting society’s superficial standards. Mi-rae’s journey is less about finding love and more about accepting herself, flaws and all. The show challenges viewers to reflect on how they perceive beauty, both in themselves and others.
On the downside, some viewers might find the resolution for certain characters a bit rushed, and the antagonists could have benefited from deeper backstory. Nevertheless, these are minor flaws in an otherwise engaging and meaningful series.
In conclusion, My ID is Gangnam Beauty is more than just a campus romance. It’s a thoughtful exploration of appearance, identity, and acceptance, wrapped in a charming and heartfelt narrative. For anyone interested in K-dramas that mix sweetness with social relevance, this one is well worth watching.
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That was such an amazing drama (I literally finished watching it 2 minutes ago) 'My ID Is Gangnam Beauty' made me laugh out loud so many times, kept me on the edge of my seat and ship the two main characters so much! At the end of every episode it made me eager to watch the next- it was that interesting! I'm so happy I watched this when all the episodes were already out because I don't know if I would've been able to survive a whole week waiting for the next one! I've never written a review but I am for this one which shows how much I really love this drama. The storyline was creative and so cute! I loved the chemistry between the two main characters. All the supporting roles did a fantastic job as well. Not to mention, the soundtrack is absolutely wonderful and fits perfectly with the show. I LOVE college romance dramas and haven't been able to find another one as good as 'Cheese In The Trap' but now I can happily say I have with 'My ID Is Gangnam Beauty.' FINALLY the message portrayed in this drama is so beautiful and relevant in today's world where everyone places so much significance on beauty and physical appearances. YOU, whoever is reading this, I want you to know that you are beautiful and strong and smart and should not worry about what other people think about you. Because at the end of the day, true beauty lies within each individual. That's all I wanted to say, feel free to add me as a friend! Now, my quest continues to find another drama that I can fall in love with, preferably romance >.<
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Be Kind to Yourself
If you go into this expecting some grand storyline I’m afraid you might be disappointed.. But if you’re just wanting to spend some time watching a simple & low-angst story of two innocent introverts falling in love & helping each other heal from past wounds then you may enjoy this drama. Also, the Leads are both extremely attractive so if nothing else, your eyes will enjoy beholding their beauty for a few hours. 😉 And I know they’ve both gotten lots of negative reviews for their acting so let me just say - don’t hate. Like the drama or don’t, that’s completely fine. But there’s no need to spread negativity & spew verbal filth. Cause hey, guess what? They’re HUMAN just like you & words hurt them too!Onto the review…
So this is the story of a girl who’s endured years of bullying due to her physical appearance. She’s the object of ridicule for the simple fact that she doesn’t meet the standards of pretty (we never see her original face, fyi.) After years of verbal abuse from her classmates she’s become extremely self-conscious & isolates herself from everyone but her best friend. Once high school ends, she convinces her mom to go against her father’s wishes & secretly gets cosmetic surgery done in the hopes of stopping any further ridicule from her peers when she starts college.
She soon discovers that, though she’s happy with the surgery’s results, the threat of it being discovered that she’s not a “natural beauty” terrifies her. So despite making a huge change to her outward appearance, her insecurities remain the same as before, ‘causing her to continue being extremely self-conscious. This allows others to take advantage of her & manipulate/bully her - she lacks the confidence needed to stand up for herself. She’s so overly concerned about what others think of her that she never stops to consider what she thinks about herself.
Enter the delightfully yummy ML. Though they attended the same middle school, they weren’t really friends. He stayed to himself & she assumed nobody wanted to be around her. They had very few interactions, but he was always kinds to her. He’s got wounds of his own he’s dealing with, though, due to the fallout of his parents’ divorce. When their paths cross again at college, they fall into an unexpected friendship. Though he still likes to keep to himself, appearing aloof & uninterested in those around him, it doesn’t stop him from always stepping in to help her when she’s being treated unfairly. He’s always quick to defend her, befriend her, & protect her. Which, of course, makes him a total green flag that us viewers can safely fall for! 💚
I admit I did get frustrated with the FL for her continued naivety where the toxic fake “friend” was concerned & her complete lack of spine in just being herself. She was such a kind person with a genuinely good heart. She was loyal to her friends, always willing to help those in need, & an all-around nice person. I just wanted her to see herself clearly sooner, ya know? Her constant rejection of the ML drove me crazy because just… whyyyy?!? Which subsequently made me adore the ML all that much more for his continued attempts to help her see her value & worth. Such a great guy, both as a friend & potential suitor. Girl, just give in! Heehee.
Now, I did like her more once she admitted her feelings for the ML & finally gave into his pursuit. The ways he helped her become more confident in herself & secure in his feelings for her are so precious. And though she struggles to make their relationship public for various reasons, I love that, once she took that step, she never looked back - she openly claimed him & was proud to have everyone know it. They’re so awkwardly cute that, even though this isn’t some masterpiece drama, I still found myself enjoying them.
The overall message I got from the story is this - love yourself.. Overly simplified, but true. Be someone you’d want to be friends with. Focus on your inner self just as much (if not more) as you do your outward appearance. Understand that looks aren’t everything - you can have a beautiful figure but a horrible personality & that will make you an ugly person. At the end of the day it’s who you ARE that’s most important, not how you look. >>> The drama also portrays the impact bullying can have on a person, as well as how destructive negative thinking patterns can be to our lives when we obsess over what others think of us. While their opinions can hurt us, it’s up to us to determine how deeply we allow the impact to control us. We can adopt a victim mentality or we can choose to overcome. The battle isn’t easy, but the victory is well worth it. 🫶🏻
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-⬇️ S P O I L E R S 🚫 B E L O W ⬇️-
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The things I always want to know 😏😉…
- First(real)Kiss : ep.15 💋
- Together : ep.12 👩🏻❤️👨🏻
- BreakUp : Nope 💖
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OPINIONS
This drama is all about the love story of KMR and DKS. More of a romance drama. There's school bullying, high-school stuff, and others. I don't think I saw any more genre other than romance but this was a very interesting drama to watch. (It was in fact my first K-Drama I watched!)The plot was unique, but it's more of a "friends to lovers" or "classmates to lovers" story... But the plot was kind of interesting.
The characters also had unique personalities. For example, KMR. She's one of the beautiful people in her batch but doesn't seek attention nor brag about anything.
The ending was as expected, KMR and DKS will fall in love and "live happily ever after". Since it is a love story, I kind of expected "Happily Ever After". And after all, it's a "friends to lovers".
The casts' acting was very good. They all played the characters greatly.
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Not my cup of Eun Woo Tea
Facts are facts. I watched this or at least I TRIED. This has to be one of the dullest dramas I’ve ever sat through, mostly because the romance felt like empty. The female lead had zero personality acting-and-face-wise (like what's the definition of beauty here?), and the male lead look too good for this FL. By the time I realized the FL was never going to evolve past that one pained expression she constantly wore, I was too far invested to quit. And don’t even get me started about the beauty part. Honestly, I didn’t enjoy this drama at all and ended up skipping large chunks just to get it over with and just because Cha Eun Woo was the ML.Was this review helpful to you?
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I enjoyed watching this drama despite some clichés, flaws are easily overshadowed by the message. The actors are not particularly bad (I've seen worse, come on), and it was very enjoyable to see female characters getting bolder on their positions in society. I feel like this kind of drama was necessary in Korean society, as their beauty standards are extremely unrealistic, particularly for women. The only thing that didn't make me give a full mark was the ending. A little too much of a cliché festival for me, but overall really nice! Was this review helpful to you?
amador
acredito que a proposta da história em si é de fato muito boa e promissora, mas os personagens no geral são mal construídos ou são só mal interpretados, não sei dizer ao certo. o fato dos personagens não se expressarem direito faz a atuação parecer rígida e ruim. falar sobre beleza e padrões é sempre um assunto muito legal de ser abordado, da maneira que foi abordado falando sobre as cirurgias plásticas, muito legal, mas a atuação realmente não foi agradável e a química dos atores também não ajudou.Was this review helpful to you?
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this is my first review of a kdrama! i’m not sure anyone would read this at all, but oh well!so.. i just finished watching it and it was absolutely amazing!! honestly, the drama got me hooked at the first episode. however at first, i watched it because of cha eunwoo but didn’t know it would get me intrigued this much.
to be real, i thought mirae’s character was sort of boring. omg sorry xkdisjd i’m a very energetic person overall, so i thought mirae was too mature and calm for my liking. but she was super kind.
at around 8 episodes into the drama, i started REALLY hating soo ah. i hated the fact that she was always around kyungseok and ughhhhh. and then she started to talk shit about mirae !! she also basically only cared about appearance which pissed me off the most.
i was also very impatient about when kyungseok and mirae would get together, lol. it was a long wait, but in the end, they’re so cute together!
i mainly love how the drama ended off with everything resolved (well idk about kyungseok’s parents but yeah LOL). and kyungseok and mirae’s kiss.. (pls give me a kyungseok.) i believe this drama gives a nice message. of how you shouldn’t judge someone from the outside, as well as a bit of self love. i know that’s like how EVERY message in almost all movies are like, but uhh yeah! i’m not going to go into too much details^^
edit: it’s been the next day since i’ve watched this drama and i literally can’t move on from it!
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