This review may contain spoilers
It looks pretty, has solid fluffy romance and goes awry towards the latter part
First of all, the drama has a great budget and has spent alot of time making sure that the scenes look nice. There isn't alot that you can point out to be "ugly" in the drama (except for the whole aspect of murder) on the visual part. I was kinda excited to watch this since it was a LONG time since I had seen Kim So Hyun in a drama. Both Kim So Hyun and Hwang Min Hyun as the leads look (on paper) as a great pair and I had big expectations since the romance surrounded heavy topics of murder and lies.The biggest thing that failed the drama was unfortunately the writers.
Both main leads lack to have great chemistry because the characters themselves are SO BLAND. You could argue that the ML is the greenest flag in the whole drama, but it just felt like he wasn't a real person and lacked any personality. Nothing he every did was wrong, but during all the accusations and threats thrown his way, he let people treat him like a villain and as the murderer even if he never was to fault. Hwang Min Hyun played the "perfect guy" and it felt like it was more about how handsome the character is rather than his personality or talent.
I stopped watching the drama when I got around the halfway mark since I was SO frustrated with the way the murder mystery-plot was being handled. It was messy and ridiculous. When I finally got through to finish the drama, with everybody got their happy ending and with the true murderer behind bars, I felt mostly annoyed by the choices that the writers took with the story. Alot of the characters just felt annoying throughout the drama.
DO watch this drama if you are looking for something that deals with a murder mystery in a mostly unserious comedic (in a k-drama comedy) kinda way with romance and if you like the actors.
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Forgettable Drama
This drama unfortunately falls into the category of those easily forgotten. It's not a production to showcase Kim So Hyun's talents, not a drama to watch for fantasy genre, not a drama to watch for Hwang Min Hyun, maybe a drama to watch for the secondary character.Great premise as usual but bad execution. It's the kind of drama that serves better as background noise. The mystery lacks depth and the chemistry between the characters never truly transcends the realm of friendship. The supporting cast tends to be more of a hindrance , being annoying and never changes, often repeating the same actions to the point of irritation.
The only nice people are the main lead and some people in the neighborhood. Unfortunately, the male lead's character comes across as bland, which may be attributed to subpar acting in this instance aka the male lead can't act in this drama.
In sum, this drama is easily forgettable and falls short of expectations. It's a disappointment that is likely to fade from the audience's memory within just a few months.
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Too many episodes, too little story
Meh.I liked the premise with the FL being pretty much a human lie detector and the light exploration of how the world isn't black and white, as she first believed, but full of nuance and how, sometimes, the lies we tell ourselves and others aren't always for bad reasons.
The ML was a little too beige for my liking, and the spark between the main couple was missing imo. They were comfortable together, but gave off the vibe of long-time friends, rather than romantic partners. I couldn't help but feel sort of uncomfortable whenever they kissed, because their lack of chemistry made me painfully aware that they were two actors doing a job, and not two fictional people in love, if that makes sense. Like they were following the script, but not actually feeling it.
Lastly, as evidenced by the last two episodes just being a fluff-fest of a mamut epilogue—to give even the most secondary of characters their happy ending—I don't think this drama needed to be 16 episodes, or had enough going on for that to be the case. Frankly, I got bored towards the end and think this would have worked better in a 12-episodes setting.
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Strong premise that got lost along the way
I started watching this drama not actually knowing what the story was about, and it almost immediately piqued my interest as the premise of the FL being able to detect lies seemed interesting and unique. I really enjoyed the first few episodes, however it slowly started to lose itself and it felt like it didn't really know what it was trying to achieve.My biggest issue is that there are far too many episodes. They clearly did not have enough material to fill 16 episodes of upwards of an hour each, and it was just impossible to drag the storyline out for that long without it getting lost along the way. There is so much unnecessary filler in here, which I often don't even mind in dramas, but in this case it wasn't even particularly interesting a lot of the time. By the time it gets to the final 2 episodes it's just completely pointless and nothing is happening as they have already wrapped up the main crux of the story by this point, and it was so fillery that it was not only boring but also felt incredibly awkward because already pointless scenes were being dragged out longer than they needed to be. I didn't even want to finish it since the story had already been completely wrapped up and so there was no incentive to, and ended up skipping through huge chunks of the final episode because nothing of value was happening at all.
It also got to a point where it felt like the FL being able to detect lies - which was the main selling point of the premise - felt completely inconsequential to the storyline, as at it's core it's really just a basic murder plot and while to some point her lie detecting powers did help them solve the case, it very easily could have been solved without her being able to hear lies. There was also no reason for her to lose and regain her powers towards the end, in my opinion, as they didn't really have that big of an impact on the story in the first place and there were no consequences to her losing her powers either. I understand that it was part of her character development of her learning to accept hearing/not hearing lies, but again it just felt completely inconsequential to me.
To add to this, the storyline itself once you remove the FL being able to hear lies is incredibly basic and predictable. I knew exactly what was happening at every moment before it happened, and I had guessed the culprit almost immediately. I also had a feeling that the "twist" with Deuk Chan being in love with Do Ha was going to happen, although I wasn't sure if they were actually going to go down that path or not. The mystery as a whole left me feeling underwhelmed as nothing felt shocking or had an impact on me, and it really was just a run of the mill murder mystery.
The acting overall was pretty decent, and the main couple was cute enough, although I thought that this was supposed to be a romance first and foremost and it kind of lacked in that department for me too.
It's overall relatively decent and I managed to make it through to the end, but it didn't feel like it did anything particularly special and I felt a little underwhelmed and disappointed in the end as I had much higher expectations for it based on the first two or three episodes. I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more if it had been condensed into maybe 12 or even less episodes, but it's an easy enough watch (although TW for self harm/suicide) if it's the kind of drama you're looking for.
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Could have been as good as bong soon but turned into a disaster!
**Spoiler alert-a messed up love story between a girl (mom sol hui) who can hear lies and a guy (Kim do ha) who is a murder suspect!**
well the starting few episodes were actually good to watch and gave the series a head start. but guess what, unnecessary dragging of plots, too much filler scenes made it into something that made me only fast forward the somehow complete the show.
the episodes with neighbours are still tolerable but the episodes with Sol Hui's monther are absolutely boring and unnecessary and pretty irritating! just couldn't understand why on earth they spent so much time on Sol Hui's parents!
the unraveling of the murder case could have been way better.
the romance! where is the romance!!!! where is the chemistry between the leads! neither emotional, nor sexual tension I could see between the leads. the second lead was better at least there was visible love for fl in his eyes...
i wanted to like both the leads but inspite of being cute they are unlikable. FL' s reactions were pretty much same for all situations where ML was stuck in poker face. i tried, trust me I tried to like them but just couldn't.
I really expected this to be masterpiece like Bong Soon and considering the girl's power it had the potential but bad and dragged up plot, zero chemistry and nonsense murder mistery made it a disaster!!!
oh please... not gonna watch again!!!!
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Didn’t know what to expect, easily got hooked.
When I first read about this drama, I wasn’t really sure what to expect of it. I have seen some dramas pull off the thriller and romcom combo before, but also some that haven’t been as successful with it. So, I decided to watch the first two episodes to see if this drama was any good.After completing episode one, I knew I would be waiting for the rest of the episodes to air and watch them as they come out. The first episode was solid and got me hooked onto the show. I was sort of expecting to have to watch two or three episodes for it to get good at first, but that was not the case.
The second episode did not disappoint either. I really am enjoying the plot so far, and can’t wait to watch the rest of the episodes once they air. If you’re debating starting this drama like I was, please watch it. If you like thriller/mystery dramas and romcoms, you’ll like this one.
I’ll come back to keep this updated as the rest of the episodes come out, but I don’t think my feelings will change on this one.
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More questions than answers?
In lieu of the more traditional form of review, this author humbly submits the following questions:Why is Hwang Min Hyun a more expressive actor when he is wearing a mask than after he removes it?
How many subplots can be introduced and left unsatisfactorily unresolved in a standard length drama?
Of the many dramas where one of the main characters is an idol, are there any that are actually compelling, complex characters? Why does an industry that is so heavily populated by idols so poor at portraying a fictional version of one?
Has anyone checked the family register of Hwang Min Hyun and Kim So Hyun to determine if they are siblings because if they were, that would at least explain the complete absence of heat in their shared scenes?
Since he didn't through the entirety of filming this show, does anyone know if Seo Ji Hoon has demonstrated any sort of emotional expression since production wrapped?
Has any paparazzi ever cared a whit about an artist who was strictly a songwriter?
Have the agent and casting director who thought Seo Jung Yeon should play a stonefaced, emotionally stunted assemblywoman been sealed in a homemade submersible and dropped to the depths of the Pacific Ocean yet?
Where does Park Kyung Hye rank among the legions of supporting actors that play the mischievous comic side relief best friend of female lead? All hail Queen Park Jin Joo obviously, but how far down the list after her is Park Kyung Hye?
Which creepy K pop agency CEO is the closest real life facsimile to Yun Ji On's Deuk Chan?
None of these are questions that really need to be answered because this is a show that the less it is thought about, the better. A point for novel concept and a strong soundtrack (if that matters) but everything else that followed was lacking. Not recommended.
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Useless lies after useless lies - a fresh premise with a weak wrap up
Sol Hee uses her ability as a lie detector for the wealthy. However, being able to hear even the smallest lie caused a lot of trust issues within her relationships, so she doesn't have any interest in dating until a mysterious famous songwriter, Do Ha, moves in next door. She's impressed because he never lies, but little does she know about his dark secret. *Trigger warning; The plot has a darker undertone as it deals with toxic relationships, self-harm, and suicide.Off to a strong start with instantly mystery with a sprinkling of supernatural. The premise is fresh & the leads are fun! The first 4 episodes are 100% binge-worthy! The writers are dropping breadcrumbs for multiple different storylines and I enjoyed. Sadly it's quickly become a drag with no suspense, only suspicion here and there. The reveal just happened like that... Unbelievable, underwhelming and anticlimactic. Useless lies.. -.- The Korean original title described it best.
The leads acting are just fine but I’m not blown away. The other character with whom I am emotionally invested is only the ex, because he looked ambiguous, but his story was just kind of brush briefly. The show also has funny moments, some are a bit over the top.
My persistently recurring issue; so many toxic female characters; Not only hysterical mothers, but I also think our female lead is inconsiderate, i.e. Why she's so bothered with his mask? “Have you not heard of COVID?". There are many reasons that he could wear a mask, why make it a big deal? I'm also not impressed by how they handle the male lead's backstory… I was waiting for a moment when they flesh-out these issues, but seems that the message is not fully concluded.
-Sept 2023, Yovita
Find me on Instagram: @kdramajudge
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Just OK. ML had one expression on his face and FL tried her best.
I started liking the show at the beginning despites so many issues. However, as things went along. I realized this show had so many potentials but the writers just didn't know what to do with any of it. Story was all over the place.The leads here are pretty average.. Two piece of woods have more chemistry than these two. But I think the blame is mostly on the ML.
The ML is just below average. They tried to give him some good scenes but he always came out very wooden.
The FL is OK/fine. She tried her best to what was given to her.
The writing and decisions just wow. Letting people go who clearly wanted to stab someone and who actually ended up stabbing someone, almost killed that person.
The murderer reveal was absolutely hilarious. Basically his gayness turned him into a murderer/violent 😂😂😂
I just couldn't.
They tried to have many surprise twists, just didn't work since you can tell the manager was the guilty one.
And the last two episodes were basically fillers. Absolutely dragged on forever. Very boring.
I knew they didn't have much material for 16 episodes.
There weren't anyone in this drama, I liked and cared for. I was into the SFL but she didn't really change or improve at the end.She wanted to take some time off for herself but I don't think she really changes much.
It's OK to like this show. It just wasn't very good in my opinion.
At the beginning this was a solid 8 despites very bad leads but just the writing really brought it down, along side funny reveals and boring last two episodes.
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Simply Great
Its a wonderful series worth watching over, Its perfect for the so few date nights that many moms and dad have, it compelling and has a great since a mystery without going to dark and keeps the mood nice and light. The girl is very unique and playful with he main character which to best describe has a bit of mental baggage.Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Its an amazing and awesome korean drama and also i love it the most and finished just and i do love to write the review about it and also it really too amazing and alsoo even the songs are also too good and the that handsome man mr. Kim do ha is really amazing like he was a discipline manner and character and also i am his huge fan too Thank you... 😊
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Sometimes lies are necessary ...
I'm kind of surprised at some of the harsh reviews with this series. I found this drama to be so fantastic from start to finish. Not only was it a great story to watch and travel along with, but the actors seem to be perfectly cast, whether being a protagonist or antagonist.Min Hyun delivers such a great role as Do Ha, somewhat mysterious early on, but eventually opens the character up so we know him completely inside and out at the very end. His counterpart, Sol Hee fits together with him like a perfect puzzle, somewhat mysterious as well, but she too becomes completely transparent to us as things move along. So Hyun matures her into the perfect match for Do Ha, something that didn't seem likely when they first met.
The supporting cast were all great, each adding something in their own special way. You can't help but feel empathy toward several of them, particularly Kang Min and Deuk Chan, each for different reasons. Ji Hoon's character, while you knew he wouldn't win back Sol Hee, you really wanted something good to go his way, which eventually he seemed to be in a happy place at the end. Ji On's role, on the other hand, was the surprise of the series. He did such a great job shaping this character, so when things take a major turn, you can't help but be shocked. I think episode 14 was definitely the pinnacle hour of the entire drama. From that point on, the last two episodes are like a rollercoaster ride, giving us all the answers we needed for a very satisfying ending. The way the final scene ends, it brought us 360 degrees back to where it began in episode 1.
I think what Sol Hee says at the very end of the last episode sums up this series ... "People's hearts are as deep and mysterious as the ocean .... you can't tell what's inside just by saying true or false"
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