Strong and original in the beginning, predictable and cliché ending
So, here's the thing. For me, this drama started out strong. It was refreshing, had a good positive message and had me laughing out loud at times, while being super heartfelt at other times.The actors did a fantastic job in my opinion. Hwang In Yeop (Seo Jun) is obviously a very skilled and versatile actor, and he definetely stole the show. He stood out to me as a second male lead, even though the second male lead arc has been (over)used time and time again in kdramas. I am not the biggest fan of Cha Eunwoo's (Suho) acting, but he definetely improved from his acting in My ID is Gangnam Beauty. Instead of his usual tsundere/stoic character, he got to show more range and he was pretty convincing in this drama. Don't get me wrong, he still has the tsundere feel, but he had some touching and sincere acting moments where I almost felt the emotions along with his character.
It was pretty good, and then, somethings changed and more and more clichés piled up. I started feeling less connected to the story around the 13th episode, but I really felt disconnected by the time I reached the 15th episode. In the last two episodes, too many things with the story felt wrong for me to keep enjoying the story fully. Borderline creepy behaviour was played off as a romantic gesture, there were a lot of filler scenes, and all trace of originality in the storyline seemed to have vanished. At that point, I didn't care much about the romance, or even the plot as a whole. The only scenes I looked forward to were the ones where I got to see Hwang In-Yeop. He was so so wonderful in his role, dealing with both a really sentimental and comical sense to his character.
I think the main problem with this drama is that it is too romance focused rather than dealing with its actual subject. Had it dealt more with their subject of "true beauty" and the actual challenges the main character lives because of her appearance, things would have felt way better in my opinion. It feels like they pretty much forgot what they were trying to say by the end and only focused on the romance aspect. They resolved her worries too quickly. It's a shame, because I think this drama could have had a good message, but it was drowned out under the weight of the romance.
To be fair, I didn't HATE the ending. I just wished it was a bit more original, as it felt like I had seen this "perfect" ending 100 times prior. However, I have to say I do like open endings or bittersweet endings, so it may only be my taste that didn't suit this ending.
Quick note on the OST: it was great. I litterally have nothing to say. The song written by Suho and SeYeon is so so so beautiful.
So, I'm definetely not saying "do not watch this". I think it's a pretty good drama. But I think keep your mind open to the fact that the ending is pretty predictable and things don't make sense sometimes (like the fact that we are meant to believe that Ju Yeong (Moon Ga Young) looks unrecognisable with makeup, when she just looks like herself with bad skin). That's probably okay too, after all, kdrama endings are usually predictable.
Overall, I would recommend it, if it's your style. I probably won't be rewatching this though (maybe just compilations of Seo Jun's scenes...)
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This review may contain spoilers
If you've read the manhwa, just.. don't watch it.
Ok, so to be honest I had high expectations for this drama. First of all the cast was splendid! Cha eunwoo fits the suho role perfectly! He's so beautiful it hurts!!! aaaahh, ga young also did really well! AND OF COURSE OUR SECOND LEAD HWANG IN YEOP, he gave justice to seo jun's character!BUT, I have to admit, I could not push myself to finish the drama. I know yall will tell me, of course the plot/ script wont be a duplicate of the manhwa, but as a manhwa reader of true beauty, I was greatly disappointed on how the story unfolded. Not gonna lie, I was so excited and invested in watching the first few episodes! But as the story progressed, it was just whack. They did my mans dirty, SUHO WAS NEVER TOXIC IN THE MANHWA! Seo Jun encountered a lil bit of insecurity probs which lead him to become a lil bit toxic, but he handle sit pretty well in the manhwa. ANYWAY, my main point is-- they did my mans suho dirty in the kdrama. UGH but whatever
ANYWAY, if u havent read the manhwa then this paragraph is for you. If you want a feel good kdrama, cliche, just rainbows and unicors, an ugly duckling who can turn into a beautiful swan, ML falls for her eventho shes in her ugly duckling state , lowkey a fairytale, FL attracts males, then this kdrama is for u. It can be a little childish tho, but wat do u expect? its a highschool love story.
ANYWAY, I think this series is a lil bit overrated and was oversold by the manhwa fans. You're better off watching Mr. Queen or Uncanny Counter. That is all, Good Day!
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True Boredom
True Beauty is essentially the high school version of My ID Is Gangnam Beauty.It has its good-hearted, clumsy girl who was bullied for her looks, its cold and extremely good-looking male lead, who is again played by Cha Eun Woo, its second lead, for whom the viewers root more than for the main lead because he is a better person, and a group of supportive friends. The story is a cliché – one of those in which you have no idea why the male lead fell for this particular girl and you are not motivated much to care about their romance. Furthermore, it requires you to suspend a lot of disbelief because the idea that someone can wear enough make-up to transform her face completely and no one will notice that thick layer of make-up is ridiculous.
The couple in whose story I was invested were Soo Ah and Tae Hoon, the classmates who have been together for a long time and still managed to be more interesting than Joo Bal and Su Ho. The other thing that kept me watching until episode seven was that I wanted to know what happened to Su Ho and Seo Jun's friend and if the two of them will become close again – they had more chemistry with each other than either of them had with Joo Bal – but I eventually stopped caring about that too.
Overall, this series did not manage to hold my attention because it is too predictable. Unless you enjoyed My ID Is Gangnam Beauty a lot, you like the actors, or you want to watch sixteen episodes of Cha Eun Woo's being handsome, there is nothing interesting to be seen.
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Great drama
Now at first I had pretty low expectations for this considering I’m not into high school rom com genre and I wasn’t gonna watch this at first but after seeing it everywhere I decided to watch it to see what everyone was so excited about. Honestly after the second episode I found myself really into this series and wanting to watch more. I literally spent a whole night catching up to the series. Ngl tho I prefer the drama over the webtoon, I just like the character interactions, lovable characters and the overall story better. Reading the webtoon and watching the drama we’re two different experiences for sure. But yeah this definitely exceeded my expectations as a fun lighthearted rom com.Was this review helpful to you?
Hilarious, Interesting, Light & Less Frustrating, Cliché story
I will start off with saying that not everyone will like this drama. If you're looking for a unique story with major plot twists, then this drama isn't it. It also isn't for you if you can't watch a high school story / drama and want something mature.This drama is based off a webtoon and the drama's story is a lot similar to teen / young adult romance stories or manga.
I did search online about the webtoon and will have to say I'm glad they altered the drama and didn't follow the webtoon completely.
There may be love triangles, but it's very obvious and not like the webtoon where there's uncertainty and could lean to either side. But what I do dislike about the drama is how they left you with an aching heart for one of the characters in an unrequited love.
I also loved a lot of the characters in this drama and the variety of characters they showed.
Ju Kyung's family are fun to watch. Her sister, Hee Kyung's reversed role relationship. I loved seeing her act in a way that most men are expected to behave in relationships and overall.
The story may be cliché , but I still had a great time watching it and was laughing through a good portion of the entire drama. All of the bromance scenes they showed were pretty fun to watch as well.
As for the story's message and how it was handled, there's not much to expect. But I do know that most dramas really don't emphasize much about the message and often stray away from it to not seem like it's a lecture. But I do wish they at least show consequences of bullying instead of a slap on the wrist like most dramas show.
Acting- I've seen a lot of bias hate towards idol actors like Cha Eun Woo and have to say that CEW did a decent job with his character. I've seen him in MIGB and his character from there is somewhat similar to Suho's. But in this drama, I could see that he's improved more than before. For me, Hwang In Yeop stole the show. He was just enjoyable to watch.
I would re-watch it only for my favorite scenes. I don't think I would watch the entire drama all over again.
As for the OSTs, I have to say they were wonderful, especially Chani's "Starlight".
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True beauty - a kdrama which definitely I enjoyed watching
I wanted to rate this drama 9. 5, but I changed my mind and give 10.1. Story - In my opinion the story is simple and can be found in other movies or kdramas.
It's possible that also in future to be done other movies which will be similar, because of that I cannot give a bad rating.
2. Acting / actors
Lim Ju Kyung :
- definitely this character is very well build.
- she is the centre of this kdrama, her story and the way it is presented will make the viewers to watch this drama in order to see how she manage to survive.
- I really liked how this character was performed, it felt so real her suffering and her love that definitely I had tears in my eyes watching this drama.
Seo Jun :
- his character make me laugh, cry and wishing for a second sezon.
- he definitely was very well performed and I enjoyed each scene.
Soo Jin :
- I know that her character, it's a turning point of this kdrama and her role is very important.
- unfortunately I could not feel intense emotions as friends (Soo Jin and Lim Ju Kyung) or love (Soo Jin and Su ho) ; I had felt passing thru the screen, a little spark of hate between her and Seo Jun, which really impressed me.
Su Ho:
- I really was impressed, why?
I was aspecting something boring with a neutral face were all the people bound in front of handsome guy, like he don't need to send any emotion, because his good looking face will be enough, in order that the viewers to watch this drama.
- this character was well performed, I really felt his emotions, in his love relationship with Lim Ju Kyung and his friendship with Seo Jun.
-his character make me laugh and cry and wishing a second sezon just to see his reaction and how would he evolve as an adult if Lim Ju Kyung will not be part from his life.
I write above impression about main leads, but I have to say that the entire cast did a great job and I enjoyed every scene.
3. Acting / scenes
- there are some scenes which are missing from school trip (what happened with Seo Jun bracelet, the way back home from trip, how they stayed on bus? )
I think that viewers need to take in consideration that this kdrama needs to respect age category (15 ages or more ), so it's possible that scenario and acting was adapted in order to respect this aspect.
I rate 10, because I saw this days another kdrama, which I enjoyed, was very emotional, had a good story and great acting, but I didn't laugh or cried, as much as, I did on True beauty...
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Awareness to Bullies
Everyone who is a KPop fan should watch this. This story highlights and defines what a bully is. Moon Ga Young who plays Lim Joo Gyung acted her behind off to make her part of the story real. Cha Eun Woo who played Lee Su Ho, I was impressed with his acting and how portrayed his character. There is a lot of storylines where the daddy is about the company and not about his children. I love Cha Eun Woo, not because he is a KPop idol but because of his personality and that is one beautiful tall man. Hwang In Yeop who played Han Seo Jun, I mean I didn't have time to look at his acting because his beautiful eyes got in my way and stuck in my brain. OMG those eyes though! His acting, uh, did he act... lol yes he did and he was great.I want to thank the writers for this storyline. I'm an activist who advocates against hate, racism, bullies, etc.! I have seen a lot of bullying on the internet but not like I have with the KPop fandoms. Toxic fans will harass and target Kpop artists so badly that can cause these artists detrimental mental trauma. Not only do toxic fans target artists they also target the fans too. Even though this drama was aired in 2020... this has been going on since 2001 or earlier, especially in 2022. I am a member of the BTS ARMY fandom and it can be very Toxic.
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I didin't like it too much
I watched this Drama because of a lot of good reviews, but for me it was an average tv show. Let's start with the fact that no one recognized the main character who only put on makeup, which is funny to me. The heroine was terribly annoying, sometimes it was impossible to watch.THE ENDING:
Su Ho left for 2 years, didn't speak for so long, and Ju Gyeong came back to him right away when he arrived and suddenly a happy ending for everyone. I feel bad for Seo Jun who was around her for so long and she didn't appreciate it. I usually don't watch love triangles because it's usually the case that the other man is much better than the main character.
I liked this kdrama for the first few episodes, but the more I watched the more I didn't like it anymore. I finished out of compulsion because I don't like to abandon tv shows.
I know the drama is based on a weebtoon that I haven't read, but if it looks like this tv show then I definitely wouldn't like it.
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Pretty good but should've been shorter
True Beauty is a pretty good show if you're looking for a nice rom-com to fill you with warmth, not if you're looking for a great criticism of society, so keep that in mind if you want to watch it.This drama really made me all fuzzy inside and it's pretty engaging for the most part, if you're looking for something easy to binge-watch. The focus is obviously the romance, although I appreciated the writers included a nice message about beauty and self-acceptance. I really enjoyed that in the end Ju Gyeong decided to stop wearing make up all the time and became more comfortable with herself, I mean to be honest she wasn't even ugly to begin with but ok. I also liked the portrayal of women here, like how the FL likes rock music and horror comics and that didn't stop her from also being girly and taking a interest in make up, or how her older sister wasn't super "feminine" in a traditional way and how she took the initiative in her relationship.
The acting is solid overall. The FL is ok for the most part, but her helplesness, her exaggerated kindness and her being dense all the time get old fast. For the male leads, I didn't have I huge preference of one over the other. To be honest I shipped Ju Gyeong with Suho because they're cute together but also cause it's pretty obvious from the start they're gonna end up together. I mean, Suho is the first one to see her without make up on and doesn't judge her for that, not to mention how they met as kids. I think they have good chemistry together, although I gotta say my sympathy for Seo Jun grew a lot towards the end.
One thing that I also loved about this drama is that they actually made Suho and Seo Jun friends again. It's really annoying how some dramas tend to end the friendship between two guys because they crush on the same girl. Suho reconnecting with his father was also nice, they could've gone much depper into that plotline, though.
But now I guess I should adress the things I didn't like. I hate how they butchered Soo Jin's character. I loved her in the beginning, but they simply decided to make her into the crazy bitch ou of nowhere. And her "redemption" in the end? We don't even see it happening, she just comes back and apologises and that's it. Also why did everyone act that her relationship with her father wasn't that serious? Like wtf???
One of my main gripes with True Beauty is that it simply runs out of a plot a bit after the halfway mark. My interest started to drop a little and the characters started to irritate me cause the writers made them self-sabotage a lot just to create conflict and keep the story going even though there was nothing else to tell.
That aside, True Beauty is a pretty nice and lighthearted show to watch and if that's what you are into, then I definitely recommend it!
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The comedy in between is something which shouldn't be ignored at all! I just couldn't stop laughing during some scenes.
Nevertheless, this drama still remains a must-watch to me as the plot, the acting, the cast, and obviously, the songs are all fabulous. I congratulate the team for such a success. They definitely won the viewers' hearts!!
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This review may contain spoilers
love it but JUSTICE FOR SEOJUN
i LOVE this show so much it’s one of my comfort shows and probably the kdrama i’ve rewatched the most (minus the last ep cos i like to pretend seojun’s ending never happened). it’s just such a cute, lighthearted drama. i love a good high-school romance and this is for sure a fav from the genre. the cringy moments are acc funny sometimes and clearly not meant to be taken seriously, and they kinda makes the characters more likeable - not cringy in the way where you actually get the ick and wanna stop watching. it’s also a little more serious at times and this balance is one of the things i like about it, because it allows you to feel rly attached to the characters as you see the funny silly side to them but also the deeper moments.jukyung lowkey gave me second hand embarrassment sometimes LOL since she’s a little slow and clumsy, but again never anything that was too hard to watch. i actually found her so so relatable and resonated with her character sm as i have the exact same mindset as her in terms of reliance on makeup, so it was really nice to see this represented in a kdrama, especially as sk puts so much emphasis on beauty standards. love sooho’s character he’s such a cutie bear and was fine asl and i love the way he cared for her & protected her even when she didn’t know about it, especially when the school found out about her bare face and he humbled soojin and did so much to make sure jukyung was okay. and when he followed that guy around to get him to apologise. there’s so many moments that show it, like damn this ho rly loved her.
however i didn’t appreciate him leaving for like 3 years and then coming back with a new playful personality, following her around and acting all jokey with her and just assuming she’d come around and forgive him?? i understand he was away caring for his dad but you’re telling me he couldn’t come back even ONCE during that entire time….?? i’m happy he and his dad sorted their relationship out but jukyung was the one who encouraged him to forgive him in the first place and start fresh, and she was his only happiness in life, so i just don’t get why he fully left her for his sake?? the breakup was completely unnecessary and fully decided by him, i don’t see why he didn't even try to make long distance work. AND HE NEVER REPLIED TO JUKYUNGS TEXTS LIKE WHAT.. YOU BROKE UP WITH HER ONLY THINKING ABOUT YOURSELF AND YOU WONT EVEN TRY TO COMFORT HER.
this is one of the reasons I AM TEAM SEOJUN HELL YEAH
DONT EVEN GET ME STARTED ON SEOJUNNNNN MY BABYYYYY MY FUCKING BABY. he would never ever abandon her like that. HIM CARING FOR HER ALL THE TIME WHEN THEY WERE ADULTS MADE MY HEART SO SO FULL. like he was there for her all the time no matter what and loved her so much. he even got so close with her family… like i am very upset that he never got even a SLIGHTLY happy ending with her after all those years of loving her, he just had to accept what it was. even if she was gonna ultimately end up with suho, why could she never just properly thank him for everything he’s done for her? especially as she knew he’s been comforting and listening to her while she cried about fuckass sooho for ages while secretly loving her, and even lying about suho leaving to get her to go to him. he’s too good for this world. and i just genuinely think there shouldve at least been a brief moment where she liked him a little and gave him a hug or a lil kiss on the cheek even. but no he never got anything bruh. WHEN HE WAS CRYING ON THE STAIRS OMFG. he should’ve told her how he felt sooner really but i get that he didn’t think she’d moved on from suho. ofc when he builds the courage to and puts on a brave front despite still being scared, suho decides to come back like ISTG THIS GUY RLY PICKS HIS MOMENTS. when he confessed and she went home and looked at the box of memories from her and suhos relationship, my heart just broke. and even apart from all this, i do just think seojun has a more alluring personality because he’s funny, sarcastically mean and teases but secretly has sm affection for jukyung and would never dream of doing anything to upset her. like he’s just perfect bro JUSTICE FOR SEOJUN PLSSSS I COULD GO ON FOREVER ABOUT THISSSS WHY DIDNT SHE LIKE HIM BACK AT LEAST ONCE HES SO FINE ASW. ffs i first watched this show like 4 years ago and i’m defo never getting over this. he even cried at the end when he became an idol, his dream job, purely cos he didn’t get the girl. LIKE HE WASNT TRULY HAPPYYYY IM GONNA DIE
anyway let me calm down. yeah seojun having a kinda bad ending is probs the only thing i didn’t like about the show. the casting was perfect for every single character, especially the main trio - they look identical to their webtoon characters. it’s obvs not rly a show that requires crazy acting but the acting was perfect for what the show needed to convey, all of them portrayed their characters perfectly and set up such a distinct personality for themselves. the osts were so good. i love suho and seojuns friendship sm and im rly glad they overcame everything that happened, and that seojun was able to look past his anger and see that suho was just as heartbroken as him. and they could’ve let liking the same girl make them hate each other again, but they looked past it and supported each other anyway. and i LOOOVE all the side characters like seojun and suhos friend groups, sooah, and jukyungs family. soojin had her little moment and i hated her for that but it was rly nice to see that they resolved things in the future and she kicked ass again like the queen i once knew. jukyungs better than me tho cos id still be a bit pissed. i love that sooah and taehoon got back together and the brother and gowon got together - a lot of cute couples came together which i loved! and it warmed my heart sm when no one close to jukyung actually thought less of her without makeup despite all of her worries. oh and jukyungs sister with the teacher made me giggle, she’s such a girlboss
conclusively, there’s a lot of good things and it’s just such a cute classic fun show. a lot of the elements of it are very basic and it has many common kdrama tropes (the car accident BYE), but it was all executed in a way that felt refreshing and interesting rather than the same old story of a high school love triangle blah blah that everyone’s bored of seeing atp. it’s not a show meant to be taken too seriously or to be known for its amazing, innovative, never done before plot but it’s perfect for what it’s intended to be. it’s defo not everyone’s thing and i do have other dramas i prefer, but i lowkey am a sucker for this type of show and i loved it.
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Amazing But Painful
Personally, I truly love this show. The casting is just amazing the actors are too. The storyline is truly entertaining and as the story progresses you only get more hooked. I loved the show because of the comedy and the fun vibe to it. There are many fun moments in the show that will make you laugh. The storyline of the main characters and the history behind the 2 male leads is also interesting. But the reason this is painful is because of the second lead syndrome. I can safely say that most watchers are a victim of this. But if you ship the female lead with the male lead then this is the perfect show for you. If you don't then just a heads up but I would still recommend this.Was this review helpful to you?
