Sh**ting Stars

A simple, sweet and beautiful story which revolves around work, friendship and love. It beautifully portrays the struggle of an actor and the team that works hard to make them shine. It also made me realise that you can find someone important anywhere and anytime in life, to Gong Tae Sung who found a brother like figure in Kang Yoo Sung, a coffee friend in Do Soo Hyuk & a partner in Oh Han Byul. When I watched the drama I could feel the regret, sadness, longing and love of character the actors wanted to portray. Loved the chemistry between Oh Han Byul & Gong Tae Sung and the other actors did a good job as well. It's a thumbs up from me and I would recommend you to watch it.

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Rom-com - fun to watch - beginning to end!

This is my first review and I felt the needed to write one because of some of the negative reviews I have read here.
I enjoyed this rom-com from start to finish because it ticked all the boxes of what a romantic comedy should be.
I thought the main storyline was interesting and eventful, well paced and thoughtful. The vengeful anti-fan club added mystery, drama and sadness. There was a backstory to this which gave the series some extra depth.

The two main characters were fun to watch. Having known each other for some time in their roles as Top Actor and PR, their obvious dislike for one another gave rise to quite a bit of teasing and insults. Their behind the scenes remarks and banter were fun to watch, especially as their feelings develop and the banter slowly becomes more playful, the intent being to provoke a reaction. I thought the actors did an amazing job here.

Kim Young-Dae's performance was great to watch, he played his part very well. It's one thing to play a role as an actor and a totally different thing to have it all together in your real life. Being able to look 'perfect' in front of a camera doesn't mean you have confidence and don't get nervous when you are confronted by your feelings or have the ability to express them to the people that are important in your life, this is exactly why Kim Young-Dae did such a great job here and I was thoroughly convinced by his character portrayal. Lee Sung-Kyung was also amazing, I have only seen her in two other series (Cheese in a Trap and Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo) and her performances always appear natural and realistic. The main couple characters grew together and looked great together, there was some really funny moments shared between them as well as with their friends and co-workers.

Speaking of friends and co-workers, all the supporting characters and the actors portraying them did a great job. They bought humour and depth to the story and the budding relationships between the various characters were also cute and fun to watch.
If you are looking for a romantic comedy with a great cast and good closure, I recommend this wholeheartedly.

There is perhaps only one thing that could have given complete closure and that would be to know what happened to Ms. Kwon. I feel like the anti-fan queen of narcissism should have had one of her many houses dropped on her ;)

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RomCom Sample Pack!

This was a hard drama for me to get into and pretty easy for me to start losing interest in, but if you like romance dramas with plenty of couples to ship this may be the perfect drama for you. "Sh**ting Stars" is about the drama industry behind the scenes, and as a non-Korean, a lot of the drama behind entertainment scandals seems either ridiculously exaggerated or boring. If you are invested at all in Hallyu Star life then you may like the premise more than I did. The idea of keeping up a pristine image for Actors who aren't doing more than dating bores me pretty quickly. Still, I liked and could empathize a lot with Lee Sung Kyung as the overworked and always-on-call-to-help Oh Han Byul. However, It took 3 tries to finally give this drama a chance.

It was the frenemies banter between the two leads that kept me watching when I was ready to drop this drama. Kim Young Dae as the arrogant and childish Gong Tae Sung was fun to watch. His character is pretty basic and some of his storylines, like volunteering in "Africa" to be a mentor, are super cheesy, and one-dimensional. Eventually, the romance plot takes center stage and that's when I started looking forward to episodes. The leads have cute although often immature chemistry. Many of their scenes are also played up for laughs, at times extra silly and childish on purpose. The entire cast has a sense of silliness about them. I could also appreciate that if you don't ship the main couple there are quite a few other side couples to ship. For me, the couples ranged from slightly cringy and forced to satisfyingly sweet. It helps that the majority of the characters are likable. I definitely grew to like many of the characters over time, and the way they all overlap made for a strong ensemble.

I only lost some interest because of how repetitive the plot became.

There are also emotional storylines that although they logically tie the stories together just never made me feel anything. It normally doesn't take much for me to cry but I stayed dry-eyed throughout. I think it just took too long to reveal these parts of the story and then they were rushed through so I didn't have time to care. The idea that attractive people are recruited into acting without having any acting ability also seemed super offputting. Like that casting process, this is not a drama with much depth or substance. Soon we were back to secret crushes, and secret couples being the main focus, which I preferred.

Would I watch this again? Probably not. Even with all the cute moments, I'm not sure there are enough to hold my attention for a full second viewing. This drama could have easily been shorter too. I did like the cast enough to keep watching but none of the characters stood out as favorites that I would want to watch again. The last episode gave me more than enough closure.

I will also admit that a lot of the obvious drama cameos and drama references went over my head because they were dramas I haven't watched. In a similar vein, I did think the self-aware product placements were funny.

Overall, if you're in the mood for a light romcom with many ships, this one is imperfect but good enough. If you get nauseated in a room full of couples then this might give you a more annoyed feeling which I can understand too. This drama is great if you're in the mood for a romcom and can't decide on what kind you're in the mood for. It's a little like a romcom sample pack. You can tell the cast enjoyed themselves and working together and that's what shines through in "Sh**ting Stars" the most.

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It's hard to take care of actresses

what sensation do you feel when you go through a long road with views on either side? Maybe it's just "just knowing", but you don't really get into the beauty/ugliness, do you?

More or less like that is felt when watching the Korean drama Shooting Stars. The audience is invited to take a straight path with flashes of fragments of the stories of celebrities and the people who work behind them. Less 'deep' so it doesn't feel intense.

It would be better if the story of the Korean drama Shooting Stars was taken from an angle like the Korean drama ‘Record of Youth’ and the Korean drama ‘Now, We Are Breaking Up’ which tells the whole story of the family and friendship of 3 women. So that the audience can dissolve and enjoy the whole drama.

A less 'deep' story, possibly causing the Korean drama Shooting Stars to only be able to gain 1..% during broadcast (16 episodes), and closed with a rating of 1.477% at the end of the episode.

Even though this drama is studded with stars. The main cast is also very great: Lee Sung Kyung and Kim Young-Dae whose chemistry is really good

There doesn't seem to be an age difference between the two. The more senior factor, Lee Sung Kyung (6 years older) is likely to be his skill at melting the difference in flying hours. Including when playing a student, Lee Sung Kyung (32 years) does not look old, and still fits in her 20s.

If there is anything that is a hindrance, it is Lee Sung Kyung's attachment as the brand ambassador of Chanel Beauty so that her clothes, cosmetics and accessories look luxurious, not in accordance with her role as an office worker.

The rest is okay. Including ost and cinematography that spoils the eye. Including several spots when Kim Young-Dae (Gong Tae-Sung) was in Africa, really cool.

As well as an important message, anyone can become a top star. But you have to process it, don't get famous and have a lot of money.

The next review can be here: https://www.maria-g-soemitro.com/2023/01/shooting-stars-review-drama-korea.html

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I wish the main couple had more of a spark

This drama is suuuuuper cute and a lot of fun! It also has plenty of hilarious scenes.

Honestly, there wasn't much plot to it and the last three episodes were pretty much a super long epilogue, but if you're in the mood for a light hearted drama with lots of laughs, a crazy amount of couples, wholesome friendship and even an epic bromance, this is the show for you!

When it was good, it was great. But I was a bit let down by a few things, the biggest being that, yes, Han Byeol and Tae Seong were super cute and adorable together, but when they kissed I didn't feel like there was any attraction between them. Most of the time, it very much looked like they were kissing because they had to and not because they wanted to. I wanted be convinced they were mad for each other, and the vibes weren't there. But maybe that was just me. I loved Weightlifting Fairy so much that it's hard to ship Sung Kyung with any other co-star that isn't Joo Hyuk.

P.S. for all intent and purposes, this drama doesn't have a villain or antagonist. There was a lame attempt at it, and tbh that was the weakest aspect of the show. Still a good watch experience overall though.

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Slow start

July 2024
I found the first episode chaotic in terms of setting the story. I had no idea where it was going and didn't feel engaged at all.

I always give a show at least 3eps before I decide whether to continue or not, and overall, am pleased I carried on. The more episodes that play out, the better it gets.

There's a little of everything here; showbizz setting of a successful acting agency, frienemies, work colleagues, friendships, relationships, love and some family stuff too.

The work environment is often hectic and seems most devoted to dealing with negative press and rumours/scandals, before they create too much damage. Lip service is paid to other aspects of the business. There is a fair bit around actors shooting their dramas, plus recruiting rookies in that profession and training new agency staff.

There was a definite message often projected, I felt, that famous people are also human. It gave examples of partially overheard conversations being misinterpreted and spread across social media, causing the inevitable 'scandals'. The Agency is then shown issuing warnings of legal action etc, etc. There's even an unlikely sasaeng type character.

Unfortunately what they don't do, is show those types getting punished.

There are some genuinely funny moments in this, where I had a good laugh; there are also some touching bits too. A lot of really daft stuff as well, which did make me cringe on a few occasions.

The romance is pretty immature at times, but then with little to no romantic relationship experience of the characters, it's not surprising and age isn't then relevant.

I like the cast a lot and thought Kim Young-dae portrayed the often dual personas of his mega star character, well. He's dedicated to his work and fans and professionally mature, but immature in other ways. It's interesting.

Have to drop in that on Gong Tae-sung's photo shoots, he looks 🔥

I like Lee Sung-kyung, too, and have seen her in a number of dramas. In this, she has a definite RBF (resting b***h face) and her character only just managed to stay on the right side of being too irritating for me, especially in earlier eps.

I rarely mention looks, but I can't not say that whenever she wore short skirts, I could not overlook how skinny she is, in this role. Not slim, but very thin, especially her legs. This really stood out to me and I found myself being distracted by that.

Also, one major aspect of the drama's story that suddenly popped up, was dealt with too lightly for me. For such a serious issue to be dropped in and then concluded so lightly, left me very unimpressed. A subject that has far too big a foot in reality, should have had a larger chunk of the plot's time, instead of repeated silly moments of bickering and running around. I think it would have added to the story and given it some gravity.

Even so, I did enjoy this, even if it lacked that depth to some of the characters. It's not a bad, or difficult, watch and often quite sweet. I wouldn't watch it again, but neither would I say don't bother.

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if a romcom Kdrama was written by Fanfiction Writers

not much of a “story”, but it’s an all around fluffy, hilarious, enjoyable time

-Side Couples/Characters are done so well, you’ll care about them equally as much as ML/FL
-Perfect Cast
-ML becomes clingy, adorable puppy
-Kim Young Dae made this drama for me!!
-many Hilarious, Lovable Bromances
-Love the Dynamic & Progression between FL/ML (Friends to Enemies to Lovers in a way???)
-Entertainment industry setting makes this very compelling
-Would Definitely Rewatch


Complaints/Critiques:

-Huge increase of Angst late in the drama was a dramatic tone shift that felt very off-putting
-Kept relying on random angsty sub plots or unconvincing villains to propel the story
-Suffered from dropping in quality after ML & FL get together (not enough to stop watching though)
-I wish the angst of ML & FL’s past together was a little more emphasized and addressed (That was the angst I actually cared about!)

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