Nevertheless,

With a taste of a poison paradiseee~ I’m addicted to you, don’t you know that you’re toxic?

This probably is the most toxic drama that I have ever watched and hopefully I will never have to do that again.
To me the drama just conveys the wrong morals and message:
"The bad boy who is playing with the innocent girl and she accepts it."
While i loved the character development between the side characters like Yoon Sol and Seo Ji Wan, who go through their troubles with communication of their feelings and honesty, the relationship between Na Bi and Jae Eon is way too obsessive and well... toxic!
The scene of Na Bi and her ex in front of her house after he he heard she was dating again was my favorite one, because it showed the strength and dominance of the female lead right there. BUT her just accepting in the end, that Jae Eon will hurt her and make her feel not worth it destroys that whole picture of that strong woman, which is really sad.

To me Nevertheless missed a lot of development between the lead couple and just Jae Eon individually. If we had a lot more evolution in his character and some more depth in his past or personal challenges for him to overcome this might have been a drama liked. Maybe more smaller situations where Jae Eon actually is reflecting about his behavior and actual understanding of Na Bis emotions.

Even though the acting was well done and then music well made, I definitely wouldn't recommend cuz of all the mentioned factors.
Was pretty much disappointing :/

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Torture, disappointment, irritation also known as Nevertheless

I've never reviewed any drama I've watched before but I felt like I really needed to do one for this.
I'll keep it short...

I quite dislike the main characters of this show, they're boring, at times really pathetic(yu nabi) and repetitive which made this show painful to sit through and tbvh, the side characters were much more interesting. This show is such a slow burn, almost as if I'm watching paint dry. Just when you think it's getting somewhere, NOPE! it's back to square one and it's been like that for most, if not all the episodes. I'm pretty sure if you watch the first and last episode only you've watched the whole show because there's absolutely no process. However, I cannot disregard the great acting, cinematography and the OST.

I procrastinated watching this show a number of times because of the mixed reviews I saw literally everywhere; nevertheless, I watched it and regretted it.

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not bad meaning bad but bad meaning good ya know

I liked this drama. The director's eye for the way a woman gazes at a man is so real, SPOT ON, visual filming done right. I knew this version would be different from the original comic which is why I binged the comic before the show ended to see what the differences were and honestly I enjoyed the drama more. I have never been into the slice of life genre anyway. However, the slice-of-life moments that I did enjoy were stress acne and surprise time of the month scenes. I was glad that Yu Nabi never forced Jae won to be better. She hoped for better but she never forced it and knew when to back off even if it was a little later than one should. Seeing Jae won grasp his own realization midway and thinking, "oh I really am messed up" was so satisfying because they finally had his inner narration displayed(something the comic lacked). I got a sense of his thoughts and I really wish there was more of that like half Jae won narration and half Yu Nabi narration. I appreciate the growth that Jae won had out of all the characters. He really had a redeemable moment at that end that I felt only he could pull off, you'll know what I mean when you see it. I loved potato dude he was adorable and a bit too perfect. He really deserved someone who appreciated all those cute things he did like omg how can you say no to that smile. So yeah I've been rewatching it and will continue to do so, don't judge me.

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One of my favorite coming of age shows

This is a show quite unlike other college or romance dramas out there. It's written to show the complicated nature of growing into adulthood, without being judgemental on its characters.

I could easily identify with the protagonist, and could see how her previous relationship, and her estranged relationship with her mother, made her as hesitant as she was. For me, I found that the show emphasised how she regained agency such that she was free to make a choice for herself in the end. It was a well-written character arc.

Male lead Jaeeon was equally complex, it's actually quite interesting how everyone has their perception of him, and you see him through the lens of the female lead Nabi and the people at school, but as the show goes on, you start to see that he may not actually be as perceived.

One I really liked is that the show made a clear distinction between changing for love and changing for yourself. For Jaeeon, he comes to realise how unhealthy his worldview is, how he has to be a better communicator, and thus grows little by little.

The cinematography is thoughtful, the soundtrack carefully curated to match the feelings of the characters. The nuances make all the difference in this drama (they are carefully laid out in story and performance) and while the pacing may lag for some as Ep 7/8 did for me a little, I found it mirrored how personal growth is never linear or a quick process in reality. Of course, Han Sohee and Song Kang did a great job in bringing these characters to life, and the supporting cast members also did a commendable job.

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The plot may be flat, nevertheless…

Have you ever met someone in your life that makes you feel anxious but excited at the same time? You feel a pull towards them and know instinctively that trouble is not far where they are…nevertheless you cannot resist your curiosity. You know the risk is high that this connection will either break your heart or heal it. Nevertheless...

The plot may seem obvious to some, but for me it was the first time ever (having seen a hundred dramas already) that I kept wondering if it will end the way I expected it to be. Even if it left me wondering where it would end the plot itself is not overwhelmingly creative. The drama lives for the soundtrack, camera angles and chemistry between the two main actress and actor.
I had to watch it three times to start liking Park Jeo Eon. He reminded me too much of someone I knew so I could completely relate and felt Nabi’s internal struggle too well. It was hard to watch them fighting their pride, misunderstandings, and past, however, if they just had a conversation like adults the drama would be over after episode 3. But it drags. If you don’t like this kind of torture you will be frustrated very quickly. It’s still worth watching since this drama is very openly addressing LGBTQ+, sex, and gaslighting, which is unique in Korean dramas.

The filming production is very high and extremely delicately shot. I live for the soundtrack, it’s been in my playlist ever since.

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Huge potential, Nevertheless

I never write reviews and I watched tons of Kdramas, but I love reading reviews here before watching a show so I thought I would add my own, because I wasn't gonna watch it initially. I only saw the preview trailer on Netflix with that scene in the bar and I found it very intriguing and well paced. I ended up binging this show....

This show begins differently and has its own mood.

I could understand Nabi and from the beginning we meet a very interesting female lead we get attached to and want to see her evolve. it was very promising until the show just ended up being a cycle of back and forth on repeat and I couldn't see a true evolution of Nabi, just like her professor keeps saying. Only by the end of the show do we see her making interesting changes.

I won't talk much about Jeon ML because there is not much to say, except for a weird evolution he goes through. however, he did play his role very well in the beginning to create that atmosphere of doubt, confusion and red flags,

the 2nd ML was a nice addition at first and a huge contrast to the other ML, he played his part brilliantly, but I feel that plotline lingered too much.

I LIKED: the flow of the show and the mind voice/vocal was spot on. I applaud the show for portraying the uncertainty, the anxiety, the confusion very well shown through the FL, but I was hoping for more evolution from her and a clearer evolution of her relationship with the ML. the butterfly, the sculpture project, and the drawings were all beautiful analogies as well.

DIDN'T LIKE: the main lesson /meaning behind the show was a bit shallow for me where it could have had a deeper approach on vague relationships, toxic relationships and love etc....

I give it an 7 because it did convey a lot of emotions through the plot and characters, it made me question my own approach to my previous relationships and my own reaction to red flags. While there were lots of cringy cliché parts of the show, I did enjoy the more explorative parts of it.

I would not rewatch it though.

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A realistic and not uncommon type of relationship.

I've watched this two times already: first time with 17 and now with 20.
By this, i can say that this drama is really more 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲, since only now i could look at it with the right eyes.

First of all, Nabi is a typical person with 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗶𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲𝘀 and some childish manners along with it. It's even concerning to see how she gets quickly obsessed and jealousy. But, at least she can recognize her own pathetic ways.
And Jaeon, the first impression we can get of him is a 𝘁𝘆𝗽𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿. The way he talks, how he moves, his gestures, it's all with the intent of seduction (and it can even get a bit cringe sometimes).

The first view that Nabi gets of him isn't much different from the stereotype, but it gets worse 𝗱𝘂𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘀𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀. I mean, he may be not sincere with his flings, but i don't think he would never do something like, make fun of her for getting her period. He even asks if that's what she thinks of him. And she also turn some things he says, worse, because in my view when he says that they're not together or having something, he was getting along with what she was about to say, so the creepy guy would stop annoying them. It really doesn't makes much sense being upset about it because they haven't even kissed yet, he was only giving signals that he wanted to hook-up with her. What is true is that he have the "Do people need to date each other?" mindset, which has nothing wrong too.
Other thing about Jaeon is that he really is a more reserved person, he doesn't talk much about himself. This way of being leaves people talking about what they don't know and imagining stuff. And i think it's intentional, for the watcher to see him (most of the time) by her eyes and the eyes of others. Also, Nabi gets anxious with this type of behavior due to her own type. We can't hear his thoughts on the beginning so we end up just like her, wondering what passes on his mind.

I see them both, as 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗶𝗻. Is shown that Nabi's mother is seemed by her as "neglecting" and she already had poor relationships, where the guy was a bad person but she loved him anyway. Unfortunately, we learn with our parents and end up 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗱𝘆𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗰𝘀. Nabi has already had an terrible ex, where she needed a bigger issue to happen so she could leave him. And, after that, she founds Jaeon, that is emotionally unavailable. And Jaeon's mother is shown too, she's distant since he was a kid, but she compensates with money. Which might have led him to be distant in his relationships too. So, what i'm saying is that even if they have personal responsibility for their choices and actions, i can see where they come from.

None of them are saints and Jaeon have his moments of being a jerk, like when he acts stupid around Nabi and the freshman that is flirting with her. But, i don't think he's a bad person. He's a guy that is 𝗮𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻, due to past experiences that isn't known much about. He even says that when you have certainty about a relationship, it becomes weak. That's why he draws some lines, as Nabi said. And, even after he asks her to date him, he cringes when he remember it. Also, I think Jaeon doesn't take much time to fall for her, but he doesn't even know how to deal with it. In my vision, it starts after their first kiss. Even his ex, Seol-Ah, can tell that something's going on with him. It's difficult to say some stuff due to the lack of information but i believe that he may has stopped seeing other girls after he realized what he was feeling. Cause, even that incident where he gets a punch, turns out to be a mistake and his ex confess that she lied to Nabi. So, i am defending Jaeon of the extreme critics he gets but i'm not denying that he has issues and can be labeled as some kind of red flag.

There's two things that i find very interest in this drama: the double meaning when he talks about butterflies and also talk about her, and the parallel between their relationship and Nabi's art. This drama is different from the others due to this type of subtle meanings. And that may be one of the reasons why people dislike this drama. But, it's so beautiful to see how Nabi gets "free" after she reconstructed her art piece. Even her professor says it to her and tells her to do whatever she wants. And that's what she does.

I think that in the end, she just 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗱 how that relationship started, in a bad way and with them both being stupid. She accepted that she liked him anyway, that she was happier in his presence. It's beautiful when he asks "you're not gonna regret it?" and she says "yes, i will regret, of course. but i'll do it anyway". They both are 𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘀 and giving a chance to love again. The prologue gives me hope that this worked well for at least sometime and that's enough. Of course, we're being more critical, i'd want them both in therapy and trying to get better. If Nabi was a friend of mine i'd tell her to be cautious with him, to pay attention to his actions. But, in general, i don't think their relationship is "toxic but romanticized" or something like that. I think it's realistic and obviously not perfect.

To end, i think one of the reasons why people don't like Nevertheless is because the drama is a 'slow burn'. It really doesn't have much scenes to leave you apprehensive, it's focused on the characters relationship. And even if i didn't mention it, the other characters are also very good to watch and analyse.

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A wonderful show about a complex relationship

This is one of my all-time favorite shows. I've seen it multiple times. The ML character gets a lot of "flack" for being Toxic and never really sincere about his female friends. People who don't even know him and have only heard rumors about him call him a jerk. She starts to believe what she hears instead of what she has learned from being around him. But what is overlooked is that this is a story about two people who have been deeply hurt. Her former boyfriend treated her dismissively and without love. His Mother dropped in once in a while when she was travelling the world as a ballerina. He has not lived with her since he was 10 years old, and they hardly know each other. Their art school "friends" like him and include him in on gatherings because he is good looking, and Mom gave him a Maserati for his Birthday! They may have called him "insincere", but they sincerely loved it when he paid for their meals out and gave them rides in his car. He has survived by having sort of arm's length relationships and not revealing too much of himself. But the more time he spends at night with Nabi, the more attached he finds himself becoming. He treats her like a queen, makes gifts for her, helps her with her wrecked project and is just generally there for her. He notices that he has never felt this way about anyone before and doesn't know what to make of that. These two wounded people try hard in their own ways to navigate this new territory. She finally runs from it and the pressure she feels. She takes up with an old friend from her old town, but finally realizes that is not the right answer for her. I loved the ending, in which they get back together and go about seeing what their world will look like at that point - no guarantees - just holding hands. Both Song Kang and Han So Hee were perfectly cast in this intimate exploration of what is truly of value and must be protected.

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There's toxicity. Nevertheless,

I started this without meaning to. I was just going to watch a couple minutes out of curiosity, probably forget about it, and move on to watch episode 8 of Romance is a Bonus Book. But, I watched the whole episode. Nine minutes somehow turned into over an hour.

It intrigued me. From the artistry, great lighting and camera work, really cool creations, just enough subtly, to the right amount of flirty.

They had me. I was short on time. Nevertheless, I started this drama.

And you know what? I don't regret it. While I ended up disliking one of the main characters, Na Bi, I was still able to enjoy this by rooting for who I did like and just observing the character as a person I didn't necessarily NEED to like or understand. I could just find her interesting at the very least.

I was rooting for both Na Bi and Jae Eon in the beginning. Unlike most people though, by the end of the drama I was there for Jae Eon, not Na Bi.

While Jae Eon is declared to be manipulative and toxic, the really toxic person was Na Bi. And the ending only solidified that for me.

So what did I love about this drama? I loved that it was very out-of-the-box and didn't tell a typical K-Drama romance story. I also loved the soundtrack, the side couples, the representation I wasn't expecting to get that was incorporated into this very popular drama alongside the main couple and treated as normal all the while, the physical art, the acting, Na Bi's backstory, and the metaphors surrounding Jae Eon.

You know what upset me with the reaction to this drama? The level of absolute hatred for Jae Eon while Na Bi got little to no criticism. She was either seen as the victim, someone who was just being too easy and going with the flow, or someone who was just a bit toxic.

I have to wonder: Did we watch the same ending? Did we hear the same internal monologues?

Because I have no idea how anyone can walk away from this still viewing Jae Eon as the "evil mastermind," or "monster" who simply got his hooks in the naïve Na Bi.

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Frustrating to watch

This is my first time reviewing a k-drama, and I felt like it was a necessity with this one. Bear with me as this will be lengthy - I have MANY thoughts regarding this drama..

'Nevertheless,' has an interesting start, however it really falls apart dramatically and suddenly. I must start by saying that I started watching this one on a whim, when only about 3 episodes were out. I thought the story was intriguing for a k-drama, and I liked the softness of Na-bi, the other characters, and the filming.

Because I started watching this when it aired, I had heard nothing of it beforehand, therefore I was unaware of the 'second male lead' (if you can even call him that). Do-Hyuk is very likeable as a second male lead/love interest, whilst I wanted Na-bi to remain single at the end (because f*ck Jae-Eon honestly - more on him later), I would have been content if she had chosen our second male lead. I have to say, the introduction of Do-Hyuk was strange and felt weirdly placed. Again, I had not heard anything about this drama prior to watching, so I had no clue there even was a second male lead/love interest. I felt like the drama should've been advertised better to include Do-Hyuk as an 'option', or he at least should've been introduced earlier in the series.

Na-bi herself is frustrating as well as the drama itself, there are times where she appears incredibly head-strong and confident in her decisions. It was refreshing to see her set boundaries for Jae-Eon and stick to them (for the most part), this is what made the ending of the drama feel so lacklustre and irritating. Na-bi had spent the earlier 2/3 of the series being confident in her choice of wanting a serious relationship with Jae-Eon or none at all, and, even in the final episode, she confirms that she knows he is going to hurt her and yet she will be with him regardless (I mean?? Wtf girl honestly??).

This series was ultimately saved by the wonderful background couples and friendships, relaxing soundtrack, and beautiful filming style. Again, Na-bi herself is likeable in the earlier episodes, it just grows more frustrating to watch her ignore Jae-Eon's red flags and borderline emotionally abusive behaviour. Even in the beginning, I felt like Na-bi and Jae-Eon's relationship was fairly representative of young people (and the chemistry between the two leads is undeniable). This series is a refreshing view on the types of relationships that young people will encounter, and for that I feel like I can't fault it. Even though the relationship between Na-bi and Jae-Eon is infuriating at times, there are so many young women who go back to men that treat them awfully and don't respect their boundaries.

The worst part of this series is easily Jae-Eon himself. Whilst, again, this type of relationship is unfortunately commonplace, he really is a prick. It is discomforting to see Na-bi state and imply many times that she wants a serious relationship, just for him to brush it off and continue to ignore her, treat her coldly randomly, and completely ignore the obviousness of what she wants. He does this all in favour of getting what he wants, someone to share his bed. Whilst Na-bi very clearly wants a serious relationship with him, Jae-Eon prefers to casually sleep with her and go off and meet other women (even talking to them in the presence of Na-bi). I think the show tries to bring this back when, in the final episode (spoiler alert - obviously), it is formally revealed that Jae-Eon had been interested in Na-bi since the first episode, where she goes to an exhibition with her ex-boyfriend. I understand what the writers were trying to do here - excuse his shitty behaviour by revealing "Oh, well! He had actual feelings for her all along!!" However Jae-Eon simply cannot be redeemed this way, and he needed more of a 'punishment' than the female lead simply not talking to him for a few days.

Overall, this drama was decent. It has vague re-watch value (it's quite nice because nothing crazy dramatic happens) and there are only 10 episodes, so it doesn't feel like a chore to watch at times. I would say that if you are watching for the first time and you are a young person - DO NOT ROMANTICISE JAE-EON. Everyone deserves a partner who will not invalidate their feelings, ignore their boundaries and sleep around without being 100% clear that it is what both parties are content with. However, the soundtrack was lovely and the background characters were truly delightful. (and again - THE CHEMISTRY!! truly wonderful to see).

7.5/10 rating, would've been higher had the female lead learnt from her relationships, or if the male lead had some time of comeuppance.

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THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I HATED THE MAIN LEAD COUPLE

First I would like to give love to han soo hee & song kang for their acting their are perfect for the main lead cast their are sooo good.
The First half of the drama is good but the 2nd half of the drama is sooo disappointing.
The only good thing about this drama is the supporting cast couples and the ost.

The ending is really bad i dont understand why the writer really want them to be together, yeah right there some real people have that toxic relationship but this is a dramaaa their should have been a life lesson for us, the only have a life lesson is from the soljiwon couple and other supporting cast couple i like them a lot more than the main lead couple.
This drama is just a waste of time.
For those who want to watch these dont watch it because there is no life lesson learn from the main lead couple but for those who want to watch these because of this is the reality of tozic relationship watch it.
Sorry my english bad hehe:)

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