Predictable romcom with boring leads
I am a big fan of romcoms. So when they disappoint they hit hard. What's with the KDrama romcoms these days anyway? I liked Jung So Min, but she is now so typecast as the goodnatured and kind but gullible female with terrible choice in boyfriends, that it seems everytime producers are looking for such a character as the FL, she is cast. And her wide-eyed mumbling is no longer cute at her age. The drama follows predictable and overused tropes of creating totally avoidable complications to move the plot, with a super annoying ex-boyfriend---who might as well have been the FL's adopted child, the way the relationship is portrayed. Choi Woo Shik, also someone I generally liked as an actor, unfortunately repeats what we see in his recent dramas: inability to create any chemistry with his FLs. By ep. 4, there were no surprises in the drama and I was just looking forward to the second leads' romance. Had the drama been able to develop rapport and connection between the main leads, it might still have redeemed itself despite the sad plot. But the stale and annoying plot, middling performances and forgettable pairing make the whole drama just that---forgettable. I'm going to stop watching Jung So Min's dramas unless she is doing a significantly different role in the future. Dropping it at ep. 8.Was this review helpful to you?
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HARD-HITTING DRAMA WITH AMAZING PERFORMANCES
Starting with a dark and harrowing ordeal, the drama raises some very important questions. Beyond the onus on victims of se**al assault to prove their victimhood, having their whole lives put under society's moralizing glare, and the secondary harm caused through cyberbullying---the drama takes a close look at the deep-seated gender biases in parenting that shape the personalities of adult men and women.The ML describes the young FL as shining, always looking ahead and fighting the odds. But when he meets her as an adult, it's as if the light has gone out of her. Because, through years and years of being deemed not good enough, always being put aside, always considered less important, being taught that obedience and sacrifice are the prime female virtues, she has settled with life.
The way the events unfold (and also why she is chosen to be the victim in the first place) is to do with this deeply ingrained sense that women must obey, accept any injustice that comes their way because that's the fate women are dealt, and they must sacrifice. Unfortunately, this set-up is all too familiar and many of us have experienced it first-hand or know of someone like this. One may get angry at the mother, but as the FL states, for the mother too, while she loves the daughter, son preference is normal, giving more to her son and expecting the daughter to sacrifice is normal even when she knows he's less qualified, and a woman's reputation and chastity are the most important things, because that is what she has seen herself.
The drama creates this complex narrative of each character brought to self-realization and change in the aftermath of the shocking event that affects the whole family. Vin Zhang as the ML brings much tension and nuance to his role and brings the outsider's perspective on the family. He is initially disappointed in the FL as an adult and even files for a divorce, but finds hope when she steps out of her shell to shine again. The drama uses the event of the assault as a crux to question the hypocrisies within families and the larger society, but also celebrates resilience, healing and the human capacity to rise above trauma. The script is layered and very well written and the performances are overall great.
I do wish, however, that there were some more moments of joy in the middle episodes to relieve viewers of the constant dark mood of the narrative. It was a difficult watch all through. I did not like the casting of the FL's brother. He is meant to be a somewhat pathetic person, but the actor looked too weak to believably show his character's growth. The court scenes were a bit meh. Perhaps it shows that that is not the ultimate focus of the series!
Overall, a very different kind of series with very strong writing and great performances. Highly impressed!!
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