If you're looking for a no brainer rom-com where you don't have to follow much of a plot and its just funny and cute to watch, you might like this.
Even though a lot of people had a huge second lead syndrome in this, I actually shipped the main couple from the start, so I enjoyed it a lot. There are some things that are a bit frustrating but overall it's a fun ride.
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This review may contain spoilers
True Beauty, Real Glow
True Beauty is a standout coming-of-age drama that blends comedy, romance, and emotional depth in a way that feels both entertaining and meaningful. It follows Lim Ju-kyung, a high school girl who becomes skilled at makeup to escape years of bullying over her appearance. What begins as a lighthearted makeover story evolves into a touching exploration of self-acceptance and identity.Moon Ga-young shines in the lead role, bringing warmth and sincerity to Ju-kyung’s journey. Her performance makes you root for her from the start, whether she’s struggling with insecurity or finding joy in new friendships. The chemistry between her and the two leads, played by Cha Eun-woo and Hwang In-yeop, is engaging without ever feeling overly dramatic. Their love triangle is filled with tension and tenderness, but it never overshadows Ju-kyung’s personal growth.
The drama is visually appealing, with clean cinematography and colorful styling that reflect the vibrant, youthful tone of the story. Every episode is backed by a catchy and emotional soundtrack that enhances the mood without being overbearing.
What really sets True Beauty apart is its heart. It doesn’t shy away from the emotional struggles teens face, whether it’s self-esteem, peer pressure, or family dynamics. Yet it keeps the narrative hopeful, focusing on friendship, love, and the courage to be yourself.
By the end, True Beauty leaves a lasting impression. It’s funny, heartfelt, and thoughtful in all the right ways, making it an unforgettable experience for anyone who’s ever felt like they had to hide who they really are.
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full of chlichés
I could not have watched this show by alone all by myself. What made this show fun was watching it with my sister, without her I would not have finished it.The first half of the show was very good, I was very engaged in the characters and what was going on in the story; however, the second half I found to be very boring.
What can I say… who I was rooting for was not winning, he didn’t get as much screentime as he should of and he deserved more.
Also, I have never seen a show with so many stereotypical clichés before. I could not even begin to count the amount of times the maid lead fell into someone’s arms an accident.
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Different, yet memorable and remarkable
SummaryTrue Beauty is an adaption from the popular webtoon series that goes by the same name. It is quite evident to point out - if you're not a webtoon reader - that this story follows a completely different path. This drama follows some of the same events, however, the outcomes are vastly different. Overall, I found this drama to be quite enjoyable to watch, especially during these times. The comedy is astounding and there were several memorable moments that will go down in K-Drama history. I think this drama did bring out some of the best in all the characters that cannot be easily interpreted and felt from the comic but undermined some of the feelings and struggles that some of the characters did go through. Some may argue that they were saddened by the approach that the directors took with changing some of the scenes and characters, but I think I liked their approach in which I'll explain why further down the line. The sub-plots were quite interesting and the romance itself was satisfactory. Albeit saying this, having to aid my broken heart, I will probably not touch another love-triangle drama anytime soon.
Disclaimer: I believe that from this drama, I became a Hwang In Yeop fan and I have grown to love his character. This review has no intent to be biased towards any of the characters as I love them all overall. I will try to be unbiased as much as I can whilst still giving my honest opinions. As much of the love story I value, character/character development is a big element for me in what is defined as a good drama or not.
Storyline/plot
The story itself was quite mediocre. The drama mainly revolves around a girl who gets bullied for her indifferences in her looks, until she discovered the wonders of make-up and transforms herself. She moves to another school and upon starting a new life there, she gets immediate attention. It focusses on her journey in accepting and loving herself as well as finding a support system that truly accepts her for the way she is. The overall story itself is quite a cliche, but as the drama develops, the story does deepen and becomes meaningful and cherish-able.
It delves into serious real-life issues that are prevalent in our society that include: suicide, the life of being in the idol scene - the good and the bad, mental health, trauma, insecurities; family dysfunctions, and disparities. The sub-plots were quite interesting, but I didn't feel like there was enough closure or explanation behind some of the plots.
What enticed me to like this drama was how thought-provoking it was. The character's actions, decisions, and attitudes really made you think beyond what the story is telling you and encourages you to analyse and build an understanding behind each of the characters behaviours and intentions.
The reason why I like the direction the story was going for was because it made the audience have something to look forward to, rather than following the original story which will defeat the suspense that was building up for the ending of the show. Arguably, this is meant to be an adaption so if they weren't going to follow the original storyline, then they should have given this drama a different title.
The romance for me, was satisfactory, I loved the relationship that had some cute moments and developments, but when it comes down to chemistry, I didn't feel much of that, in my opinion. I think the chemistry was more directed to the friendship. But still, the bond for the three characters was remarkable and unforgettable.
Let me mention the comedy that this drama brought. I loved all the scenes that included some comedic value in them. It made this drama light-hearted that balanced out the more serious scenes that it entails.
The downsides to this series, however, is how the story did divert the attention away from the original storyline and decided to include a love-triangle. Whilst I do believe that it made the show more entertaining and kept the viewers engaged, the execution was quite anti-climactic. I think they should have focussed more on the female narrative with the love-triangle coming after; that way it could stick to the storyline's true intent. Another critic I would make is how some of the serious scenes were quite exaggerated to the extent where it became more humorous rather than emotional which really deflated the emotions that were behind that scenes in the first place. Lastly, the ending felt a bit too rushed with a time jump, it would have been better to have at least two more episodes to really wrap-up the whole series
Cast/Acting
Suho
Suho is known as the top-student and is quite taciturn, mundane, and has a cold-like exterior. Throughout this drama, we get to see the story of his dysfunctional relationship with his Father and the constant battle with his mental health due to unfortunate events that are revealed later. As the drama progresses, we get to see more of his caring side as he opens himself up a little bit more to the world. This drama brought justice to his character and how his emotions and past traumas manifest into his actions. He had his effortlessly humorous moments. I particularly liked his character development in how he handled tough situations over-time, for example with how he dealt with his unhealthy behaviours. His story overall is quite touching, and you'd feel like you want to reach into your screen and give him an immense hug amidst it all.
However, the one thing I don't like was how they made him look 'creepy' in some scenes, this isn't something that bothers me immensely, but I wanted to point that out because whilst it brought a bit of comedy into it, I did find it a bit uncomfortable if I was put into the character's shoes, but that's just my personal opinion.
Knowing Cha Eunwoo from Astro, I had no prior knowledge of his acting skills. For the first drama I've watched that Eunwoo starred in, I am thoroughly impressed by his acting and his portrayal as Suho. He executed the emotions of his character outstandingly that really got the audience to feel for his character. Overall, Suho's cold demeanour towards others, except for the very few people he cares about definitely swayed the viewers, but as time went by, he came out of his shell. His growth is worth mentioning and as a viewer, I felt proud like he was my friend as well.
Jugyeong
Jugyeong is the 'angel' of Saebom High school with her beautiful looks that attracts attention across the school, but underneath that mask lies deep struggles in self-love, self-acceptance, and trauma that shaped her into the person she is known as. She also has a dysfunctional family which was shown more in the webtoon. Jugyeong is a selfless and kind-hearted character that never fails to be there for others and empathises with those around her very deeply. She is the most memorable character for her dorkiness, clumsy and child-like personality. I loved her character development the most as it shows her overcoming her struggles with assertiveness and confidence. Her story is very empowering and inspiring that I could resonate with some of the feelings that she felt throughout the drama and it made me want to hug her as well. I especially loved the relationship development between herself and her family which was touching, indeed, the message behind her story is heartfelt and something that I wish I had known when I was a teenager. To some, her character can be very unlikeable due to her naive-ness and clueless traits, but that can be justified.
This prompts me onto my next point that I did find her character unlikeable at times due to her being portrayed as naive and her somewhat selfish acts that took place, though these were subtle and didn't cause me to dislike her overall. Again, the character was well portrayed I really did feel connected to her as an individual.
Watching Moon Ga Young from her previous role in 'Tempted', I was amazed at how vastly different these characters are and Moon Ga Young was competent in showing the goofy, but emotional side to Jugyeong. She is one of my favourite actors out there.
Seojun
Seojun, shown to be the badass; unlikeable; presumptuous character in the early stages of the drama, stole the hearts of many viewers out there, including myself. Seojun has a very baddie and somewhat intimidating exterior, but later, shows his caring and soft side. He has a very dorky, goofy, and selfless demeanour and is a family-orientated person. It is fair to say that he created one of the most iconic moments for the drama with his humour. At first, it showed his overarching responsibility as the older brother, but that kind of faded away over time. We first see him being stirred into trouble with a group of guys from a different high school. However, this subplot wasn'twell executed because we never saw the events that led up to the incident and Seojun's relationship with them. This drama touched upon Seojun's trauma against the idol scene and his mental health towards his past unfortunate events. We later see that his self-blame and handling of the situation was expressed very negatively that caused a detrimental effect on someone that he cared for. The reasonings were later revealed. As a result, his character development was very touching, and he is the true epitome of holding accountability for his actions. As the drama progressed, we saw a much softer side to him towards the one he liked. It is quite true to say that out of the events, it broke the hearts of many and made us feel truly hurt with every scene he was in, but out of that, more love for the character was developed. Overall, I particularly loved the dynamics to his character that made him more realistic and relatable. I'll repeat for the other two characters, he was a character that I also wanted to give an immense hug for.
I do have to say that Seojun was kind of treated like a side-line character that did not have much background to him as the drama went on. The drama didn't do justice to Seojun's feelings compared to the webtoon and didn't show much of his life story which I was quite saddened about.
Watching Hwang In Yeop in previous roles like the 'Tale of Nokdu' and 'W.H. Y', I think he did an outstanding job in portraying Han Seojun with the character's dynamic personality and displayed his emotions brilliantly. I'm glad he was able to play this character as I wouldn't be able to imagine anyone else playing Han Seojun the way Hwang In Yeop did
Sujin
Another top-student and was known as the 'strong female lead' for her amazing skill in martial arts and the protector of her friends. Sujin is shown to be quite competitive in life with a strong and powerful demeanour. Although she is shown in that way, we do get to see her more vulnerable side which is where her story comes in. I liked the approach the writers took with the disparities of her character as it leaves the audience feeling for her much more. I especially love her character development.
Park Yoo Na does an incredible job in showing the two sides of Sujin and my love for her as an actor has really grown from 'Sky Castle', she's amazing.
Extra points on Seojun and Suho
I feel like it's worth talking about Seojun and Suho as individual characters side-by-side because, from my perspective, I do believe that this drama kind of sheds light on the contrasting situations between these two.
I firmly believe that these two characters portrayed their struggles in different ways. Suho, having nobody by his side to support him emotionally, he was left alone with tackling his inner demons. He felt loneliness because of having nobody. This left him to deal with events that came up in his life in an unhealthy way.
On the other hand, Seojun had friends and family by his side, this means that he was able to deal with the events that occurred in his life in a slightly healthier way. However, with that being said, Seojun never had anyone he was able to confide in. He had people that were there for him to fill in that space of emptiness, but he did not have anyone that he could truly relate to and be himself with.
The moral of the story is, I believe that one can struggle in different ways. You can feel lonely with or without people and that solely depends on who you have around you. Therefore, I value the friendship that the three main leads have. Jugyeong was able to fill in that space and change their lives as well as them changing hers. Thus, I think this show was meaningful to watch for the development of the three and their individual stories.
Honourable mentions
The supporting cast have been heavily involved in the story, bringing depth towards each character. The show doesn't just present the story of the main characters, but also shines a light on the supporting cast and their personalities. They included everybody that brought together this drama and made it 'True Beauty'. Tae Hoon, Hyun Gyu, and Soo Ah are definitely supportive friends that you'd want in your life, HeeKyung is one of those independent and strong female characters that play opposite gender roles in a relationship, Mr. Han is the supportive teacher we all need in life with his cute, clumsy and innocent personality; Cho Rong with his funny and relatable personality traits, Juyoung and his hilarious, cocky and dorky personality, Go Woon with her adorable and strong exterior and Jugyeong's hilarious and supportive parents. And lastly, Se Mi. Although she is the antagonist of the show, it wouldn't be 'True Beauty' without mentioning how her relationship with Jugyeong brought this story together I loved how all the individual characters that contributed to the value of this drama with memorable moments that we will all cherish.
Music
The music was quite fitting to the drama with my favourite song 'Missing You' and 'it Starts Today'. There wasn't one song that really stood out to me and the one that was deemed as the number one song for the drama. I think that every song was good in its own ways.
Rewatch value
I'm not really the one to watch an entire series again, I would only watch the highlights, however, I would rewatch this drama to relive the moments that this show has brought and understand more things on a deeper level. On the contrary, I wouldn't want to because of the emotional rollercoaster that the show put us through. But on a serious note, there were some happy, laughable, and treasuring moments this show had that made the audience connect with the cast and the story more, so I would deem this as rewatchable.
Conclusion
I would recommend you watch this to get the best of both worlds, if you're a webtoon fan and if you want to see the story being brought to life. Would I say I'd prefer this over the webtoon? It's not a straightforward question to answer as both have their pros and cons. As I said, you would have more connection with the characters like if they were your friends that you don't feel much in the webtoon.
If you're not a webtoon fan, then I would say it's a light-hearted, sweet series that is fun to watch. But that's all down to your personal tastes.
To conclude, I was undermining the story at first and was doubtful of the direction of where this drama was going, but I turned out to like this drama more than I'd thought with a few beautiful messages behind it. It's worth a watch. You can delve deeper into the other topics that are included in the story that's not just about the romance. The most integral thing out of the series I would mention is the chemistry between the actors behind the scenes. It was touching and cute, very family-like. Also, to mention individual efforts that were made towards the series. I believe these are a crucial element in bringing together a memorable and well-executed drama.
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Fun time!
Short: Webtoon style "hyper real" (expect the characters to be dialled up to 110%) like others such as Extraordinary You. TRUE BEAUTY isn't about makeup, TRUE beauty is the real YOU, confident and with courage. In this drama, she takes that journey. Great actors, great characters. Music is ok but didn't stand out as much as others have. All the usual tropes, love triangle, breakups, they-met-as-kids etc - it is kdrama after all - but I thought they were largely written in quite sensibly :)Detail:
Some really interesting characters in this - the female lead struggles with her appearance and being bullied and it leads her to the roof of a tall building standing on a ledge contemplating her future. The male lead happens to be there because previously his best friend had jumped from that ledge and he was remembering him, he pulls her off to safety.
She learns about makeup, and moving to a new school arrives transformed as the most beautiful girl in the school, where she quickly gets lots of friends and happiness.
So... my initial thought as the drama starts in this way is... oh I do hope there's a bit more depth to it than "make yourself pretty so people will like you" and thankfully there is. She struggles with her appearance throughout going to extraordinary lengths to make sure nobody can see her "bare face" fearing that friends will instantly turn to enemies. Indeed, there is one moment in the story... which I won't go into... and it's played out really well as everyone reacts strongly but not all for the same reasons, and it ultimately provides a lot of courage for her as she realises if you're around the right people it doesn't matter at all, and if you're around the wrong people - they don't matter.
What was really good for the female lead was seeing her grow from a girl in school to a young adult as she steps into her working life - going from the struggles of school to figuring out what she wants to do and then pursuing it vigorously, as she goes from someone near the bottom of the school leagues to someone who is driven fiercely for what she wants to do. I think everyone goes through that transformation as they get frustrated with the doldrums and stress of school and switch to doing what they are truly passionate about.
The male lead doesn't go through the same length of journey at all, and while I have no objection to his character and enjoyed its participation in the story, he was there as the supporting character for the female lead, without a doubt.
The SECOND lead however - was easily one of the strongest and best characters i've seen in a drama in a while. His strength of character even in the latter episodes when he would have been completely ok to pursue what he wanted, took a better path instead, choosing what he knew she wanted. Difficult to go into detail about why this moment towards the end struck me but it was really well done. He's a misunderstood character at the start who is acting out, but this is not your average love triangle. Sadly, he's doomed to suffer the fate of all second leads unfortunately (I don't consider that a spoiler because if you go into a drama expecting it to end with the *second* lead... you're probably not reading the room ;) ).
Secondary characters... the female lead's sister and the teacher - funny as heck (as are her whole family tbh). So refreshing to see such a strong woman knowing what she wants and just going for it with all the force in the world. Absolutely her mothers daughter, but equally good to see the cheeky bit later on when it's clear that it's not entirely one-way and he can pull her strings too (I am probably explaining it badly - but suffice to say, it is a well balanced relationship :) ).
Her friends - one of them goes through a bad time and becomes the bad-person, and I was very pleased with out how that was concluded.
All in all, some really great characters and performed well by their respective actors and actresses.
It is a webtoon style drama, like Extraordinary You, so expect your characters to be dialled up to 110% - it's done in a nice way that works well and is fun throughout :)
The ending is nice and drawn out, it's chilled and feels really good.
Why not a 10? Purely because I think that while they nailed the problem with the way she felt about her self image and about the bullying at school I'm just not sure they actually nailed the conclusion to that quite as well as they could have. I can't put my finger on it, because she got her moment with the bully, she got the support from true friends, she supported someone else in the same situation and helped them, and got the courage to be her true self. So i'm not sure why it's niggling on me, but... it is. That's why I only took a half off.
TRUE BEAUTY isn't about makeup, TRUE beauty is the real YOU, confident and with courage. In this drama, she takes that journey, and it's the day she turns up to her new school in her bare face she becomes the True Beauty.
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This review may contain spoilers
I Cannot Get Over this Drama
Oh my gaaaaaaaaaaaaasssssh!True Beauty is an elite drama- totally on another level.
Story 100%
Humour 10000%
Cast 100%
Second Lead 100%
OST 10000%
Bromance 1000%
This is the first time I watched a drama back to back because it was too good to stop. When I started out, I feared there would be the usual high-school/teen drama cliches and yes there were some I-definitely-saw-this-coming scenes. But amazingly, that iddn't take away from the drama's freshness. It was still amazing and refreshing.
I loved Soo-ho and Ju-kyung together - there were cute without going over the top. Cha Eun-woo is not a good drunk to watch though - my only complaint from the drama was that scene. I loved Seojun! He brought life to this drama! Oh my gosh, I was really rooting for him but there was no way he gets the happy ending *sigh* But my absolute favourite character was Hee-kyung. Yo! Incredibly well-written character - hilarious, strong female, unapologetic about who she is and what she wants. I want to be Hee-kyung when I grow up.
My dilemma now is - how do get on with my life after True Beauty?
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Why is this considered a classic in the kdrama fanbase?
First of all why was this so fucking long like damn. I'm so glad we got rid of forcing every single kdrama to have 16 episodes. The story was dumb as fuck and didn't go anywhere. Every single cliche you could think of was present here. The worst of all: the miscommunication trope: CHECK!!!! YAYYYY!!!! Like we're TIRED. It's also the fact that they tried to convince me that girl is ugly because she got some pimples and glasses and when she put makeup on everybody gagging all of a sudden like no ma'am! Mun Ka Young being the fl does NOT help this show, in fact she's the reason why it was hard to keep watching and i had to force myself to finish it. Cha Eun Woo is (as we know) not the best actor either so he didn't help either. Park You Na is a good actress but her character is fake as hell so I didn't care for her either. Hwang In Youp was definitely the selling point here even though his ass was annoying asf too like he FAILED to drop the douchebag act for one second and then was surprised when she ain't pick him!!! And I was mad too!! Like that's how badly written the show is. I'm rooting for the fl to end up with the antagonist chi-Was this review helpful to you?
A must watch!!
The love triangle in this series created some of the best funny moments I have ever seen. The romance was definitely a highlight for this series. I enjoyed the whole series from start to end. The ending was very satisfying and left nothing more to desire. A must watch!!!If you want to laugh a lot with the characters, if you want to get emotional and if you like the cliché moments that makes you fall in love, you should definitely check out this drama. Ignore the low ratings, most refer to one of the characters not getting more what he deserved, which I agree, but giving a 5 or 6 is even more unfair, especially when you consider the whole drama.
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Cha Eun-woo's character was nice to watch, as he opened up and grew with each episode.
Hwang In-youp's role was more consistent through the episodes and one that I liked the most. He wasn't fluffy or difficult and a lot more open and outspoken.
What I didn't like was what I felt to be a very superficial portrayal of how girls, especially, are judged on their appearance. Yes, it happens to guys too, but not as much.
I just felt that the whole issue was somewhat undermined. The bullies, as usual, seem to get away with it. It shouldn't be up to kids to sort out, but stopped in its tracks by teachers and the establishment. That's just never seen.
The bullying in this was horrible and her own family were no better. I really disliked the mother.
One character in a latter episode, suggested a dermatologist and I actually cheered! The character's biggest problem was actually her skin/complexion, which could have been treated, not her actual looks.
The angle of being outed for wearing makeup was also somewhat contrived, especially when the main ones harassing her, wore plenty themselves! No one thought to point that out though.
One thing it did show were more-unattractive-than-her peers, judging the looks of another. It has often occurred to me that it's not uncommon for the people that judge the looks of others, to be really quite ugly themselves... I wonder what they see when they look in the mirror?!
I also dislike violence against kids by adults and, again, this was shown with no real consequences for the perpetrator. That kind of suggests there's no way out in that situation and it therefore has to be accepted.
There were also several parts of the plot in the storyline that were simply glossed over, to me, rather than being concluded sufficiently.
I also don't find toilet humour that funny, especially when overdone and featuring in more than one scene. People throwing up on others and seemingly thinking that's acceptable, also puts me off; as does treating someone else's home and belongings as their own. Just not amusing to me at all.
Whilst the cast were great, the story just wasn't for me.
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REASONS WHY I LOVE HAN SEO JUN
1. he is just sooooooooo fucking fine (if you don't agree you can go and jump into an ocean)2. even though he loved the FML he didn't try to fight for her but rather cared for her when she was in need and gave her space when she needed it
3. he respected his friends' feelings
4. the fact that he hates bullies
5. his fucking aura
6. the way he brought the main lead together (when you watch the show you would know)
7. his style
8. when he roars (oh my f*&k me)
9. and also the way he makes everyone scared when he enters (that is so fucking sexy)
Okay that is all for now cause I don't think it would be proper for me to write the other thoughts as they are quite sexual
anyway I still hoped that the FML and Han Seo Jun would have ended up together but whatever
don't you dare dream of Han Seo Jun he is mine
Hope you enjoy the show bye
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A Better Watch The Second Time Around
I watched this drama while it was airing. I was also watching it while the web took was at it's peak and was actually good. I originally rated this drama 6.5. I was bitter they changed so much to the original webtoon and everything could not compare. Watching it a second time and with the web took being over (and disappointed how it ended), I really enjoyed this one much more. Unlike the webtoon, the characters, especially Ju Gyeong, have more development than the webtoon. You get to know more about them and why there's strained relationships or they are the way they are. The story had somewhat of a plot to follow. Yes, that plot is the love story, but they do sprinkle the self-confidence bit. It wasn't like the webtoon where it was always, "woe is me Ju Gyeong. No one else is important.I think for the genre that the drama is, the acting was good. It's meant to be that over-exaggerated dramatic high school close-up with pained facial expressions style. It's supposed to be leagues more animated than the normal drama. Did I personally care for it? No. Would I have watched the drama if it was more serious? No. It was the right balance.
The drama circles around constantly to one song. Naturally, you hear that song a million times because of it. I don't blame the writers and there was other music, but you really take away remembering that one song.
Would I rewatch it? I'd be lying if I said no. Technically this was a rewarch because I couldn't remember a lot of what happened and wanted to give it a proper rating. With that aside, I honestly would not watch it again. It's not my genre, so there's no need to continue to force myself to try to enjoy it.
Overall, this was a cute drama. They stray from the webtoon in a clear, cohesive way that leaves it open to really develop the characters and understand what they're going through in that moment
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Clichê
True Beauty é um dorama leve com uma pegada bem próxima de uma comédia romântica. A história lembra bastante Love Alarm, com aquele clima escolar, triângulo amoroso e dilemas sobre aparência e aceitação. No início achei interessante, mas depois percebi que é um drama bem clichê, com situações previsíveis e personagens típicos dos romances adolescentes. Ainda assim, é gostoso de assistir, tem momentos engraçados e cenas fofas que deixam o coração leve. A mensagem sobre autoestima é bonita, mas tratada de forma simples e superficial. No geral, foi uma experiência ok, nada marcante, mas divertida o suficiente pra passar o tempo.Was this review helpful to you?
