The slow and excruciating ending ruined it for me
Started as a funny series, and as always transitioned into a romcom (melo) drama. The starting was fun but towards the end it had gotten a little bland..but I would have still given it a 7.5 or even 8 star (making it a decent series) if they had rounded up the series well. Honestly it would have been a much better series if it only had 12-14 episodes. Making it a 16 episode series just ruined it for me. towards the end I had to watch the series at 1.5 and still I would just skip 10-20 secs sometimes. There a few twists in the end which the maker might have thought would save the ending but no, they didn't.Was this review helpful to you?
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So good that it should have had a longer running time!!!
I absolutely loved the story and the way it way presented. The series is basically about different insecurities of different people and how each one of us built assumptions based on it. The best part of direction here was that the viewer gets to listen the thoughts of not only the main character but others as well, which immediately shows how our insecurities are building our judgements about other and how they can be so wrong.I read many reviews which said that there shouldn't have been so many side stories, but I strongly disagree !! The issue actually is that due to shorter running time, the side stories didn't felt too deep, But I think most of them did the job (except the story of the manga writer mom, which I felt could have ended better), and we see the result of this in the first scene of episode 9 where all the 4 women are sitting and talking about relationships and giving thier opinion on divorce. Because we knew the back story of all the other characters, we could understand exactly why they had the opinion that they had and that scene felt really well done.
The other aspect that I really admired were the few but slow sensual scenes, I haven't seen such well done intimate scenes in a really long time. It's a very good example which shows that you don't need nudity to make a really intimate scene.
Improvement needed-
There were some scenes where I thought direction could have been better, and ofc I already mentioned that with slightly longer running time there could have been more depth in the series but still these all aren't dealbreak.
I would whole heartedly recommend it to someone who wants to see a non-clice drama with a hint of romance which focuses about the less spoken things in society
P.S- Special kudos for having a asexual side character
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The only series I ever Rewatched !! SciFi Romance has never been better <3
Don't overthink, JUST WATCH IT!!I Don't know why people are hating it rn, but it's only of the hidden gem series of the year. I might be slightly biased for some reason to give it a 10, but even if I am being my usual self ( i.r being critical) I can find any reason to give this series less than 9 stars.
The acting, the pacing, the songs, the consistent attention that the series grabbed is what I love the most. I can't find a single significant flaw which I could point. Ofc some people could have their pet peeves or might dislikes the leads for some reason, which could be their reason for the low stars, but I would definitely recommend you to watch the series. Even if one doesn't fall in absolute love with it, still you would enjoy the series and appreciate it, in my humble opinion.
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More disappointed cos of such a talented cast
I absolutely loved the ML and FL in their other works, which made me watch this series. This made me more disappointed in this series. Honestly, I was only able to finish the series cos the FL looks so lovely.. ML was maybe not suitable for this role cos he never gave a a chaebol vibe (even tho he is a excellent actor). The most important part was there is NO CHEMISTRY between the two, only a couple of sparks in scenes towards the end.The second leads had much more chemistry and charm in my opinion.The story being generic and bland didn't help at all..no suspenseful arc or anything which added a good tension in the story. OST, Cinematography etc were insignificant.
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Romantically Intelligent drama with the most Lovable Narcissist ML ???
So I had already watched it once last Year, when I had just started watching Kdramas. And then this series felt good, but nothing exceptional. It took me an year to develop the direction,story telling and the cultural understanding to really appreciate it, when I saw it the second time. The story is good, but it's the Narration, direction and acting is what really makes this series! It's very intelligence but in a emotionally artistic way.It's peaks at episode 8-10 into such a unreal (boss and secretary) but relatable (the dynamics of romantic relationship)way.
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Shortest Tags - Hidden Gem, Must Watch
Walked in with low expectations after just watching a funny reel of the girl who recated differently in school after a guy draws his n*de sketch, but oh boy I was in for a surprise.It has a very funny take on things in the beginning with OTT metaphors, fun t direction style and comedy sketches in the beginning but man oh man does it become serious in the second half with it being super emotional and even tackling relatively tabboo subjects in Korean society very aptly.
The best part was the story. Never have I felt a story written so perfectly, especially the misunderstanding which is shown for 14-15 hours 🤣. Also kudos to the original and Non-cliche story (except the first love part) which makes it stand out even more. I am on a streak Kdramas, which are much more popular than this, but I found this more addicting, fun and at the same time so heart touching that am I absolutely loving it.
P.S- The end could have been slightly better if it would have been more explicitly shown what happened to the fking as*hole (not going to mention more or else it will be a spoiler), but other than that, I would say they end the series quite neatly.
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Very well made and perfectly balanced series
I just loved that fact that I never felt any shortcoming (or atleast prima facie I could out my finger on it), usual each series has something that it lacks, but this doesn't!! No loose ends and scene whihc makes you think that 'oh, why could the character do this or that' (there are a few scenes where you might get confused ans to why this happened, but the justification of that lies in the complexity of the character and the situation...you just need to think it thro)The story is good and is developed very well. The casting I really loved (especially the ML when she was young n the older one) and the acting as well. Here was romance and a little bit of mystery as well, just enough to keep you hooked.
This is one of the best examples of series which decided to go for a 12 episode series which fits appropriately to the story. It would have lost its charm if it was a 16 episode series.
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Funny>Drama>Emotional>Romance
Sweet lil Melo with it's funny and emotional moments.I was about to rate it 8.5 stars towards the end, but ended up rating it 8, as that's what it felt like all along. I liked the ending and some other arbitrary reasons were making me rate a lil higher (~8.25) but I think 8 should be fine for this.
The story is okay with its twist and turn with some emotional moments as well. The funny side characters were also landing the scene most of the time. The editing was good too, Hence I had no major complaint. Overall, the series kept me engaging enough that I enjoyed the good parts and wasn't too bored at the weakest parts.
I especially enjoyed the FL, who I saw for the first time in this drama. Her acting and charm made me stick to the episodes when I was about close and get up. The ML was okay too. Not to mention some side characters were also quite funny.
As for some of the criticism of the people who rated it quite low, I couldn't make sense of them at all honestly. Their reasons seemed to me extarnally influenced mostly. I could understand someone who would rate it as low as 7, or even 6 in some extreme cases, but over all this series avg should be around 8 honestly.
In the end, I would recommend it as a good and fun one time watch !
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'The Story of Women Who Fight' — Powerful, Emotional, and Criminally Underrated
Every once in a while, on a whim, I choose to watch a low-rated series. Normally, ratings, reviews, and audience comments are what determine whether I'll give a show a chance. But once in a blue moon, that spontaneous decision leads me to something I can only describe as a hidden gem—a true masterpiece.
This was one of those rare occasions.
I randomly decided to watch it simply because I wanted to see a series starring actors chosen for their talent rather than just their looks, and because it was only five episodes long. What I didn't expect was to stumble upon one of the finest adaptations of real events I have ever seen. Even more astonishing was discovering that most of the story is actually true.
The series chronicles the golden era of Japanese women's professional wrestling in the 1980s—a phenomenon whose popularity, cultural impact, and sheer intensity genuinely felt like uncovering a forgotten revolution in history. As someone deeply interested in history, it's incredibly rare for me to come across an entire cultural movement that I knew almost nothing about.
I won't go into the plot or story details to avoid spoilers (the synopsis already does a good job of setting things up). Instead, I'll focus on why I loved this series so much. For context, anything I rate between **9 and 10** belongs to my personal S-tier, and this comfortably earns its place there.
What impressed me the most was how effortlessly the series made me feel exactly what the creators intended—without ever feeling manipulative. That's something many shows, especially some K-dramas, struggle with. Too often, emotional moments rely on artificially shocking twists that you understand are necessary from a storytelling perspective, but rarely *feel* organically earned.
This series was different.
The excitement, joy, heartbreak, tension, and shock all emerged naturally as the events unfolded. Knowing that these moments were rooted in real history elevated the entire experience to another level. Yes, the series takes a few creative liberties here and there, but with the real personalities involved in the production, it never loses sight of the truth at the heart of the story.
The performances deserve immense praise. Every actor delivers a phenomenal performance, and the character development is equally exceptional. I could genuinely feel the gradual evolution of each character, and every transformation felt emotionally and logically justified—something many storytellers fail to achieve.
The editing is another major strength. Not once did my attention drift away from the screen. That's saying a lot because I've found myself struggling to stay engaged with many highly acclaimed series lately. Here, every scene served a purpose, and the pacing remained consistently gripping throughout.
Of course, there are a few things I personally might have done differently. I would have included a handful of additional real-life incidents to provide greater historical context, and perhaps explored some more personal moments that could have made the emotional highs hit even harder. But honestly, those are incredibly minor nitpicks. Who am I to question the decisions of creators who crafted such an outstanding piece of storytelling?
In the end, I'll simply say this: the chances of you being disappointed by this series are incredibly slim. The only real exception would be if you find graphic violence difficult to watch. Some wrestling scenes are fairly explicit, featuring bloodshed and brutal injuries. I suspect that's one reason why the show has received lower ratings from some viewers. But after watching footage of the actual matches, I realised the series wasn't exaggerating for dramatic effect—it was staying remarkably faithful to reality. In fact, portraying that brutality honestly was essential to understanding the physical and emotional sacrifices these wrestlers made. Sanitising those moments would have not only weakened the story but also would have taken important parts of it away.
Sometimes the best stories aren't the ones everyone is talking about—they're the ones you discover by accident. And for me, this was one of those unforgettable discoveries.
P.S. - Best Way to enjoy the series - Just go for it without any overthinking or research into the story, and once you have seen it, read this article ,if you enjoy reading the real stories behind the inspired stories -
https://prowrestlingstories.com/pro-wrestling-stories/dump-matsumoto-vs-the-crush-gals-ajw-japan-feud/
and then watch this original fight (which you will enjoy if you watched WWF/WWE as a kid) -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOc2S04YiC0&t=196s
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What I thought 'My beloved summer' would be like....
This series was what I thought 'My beloved summer' would be, Slow paced but full of deep and introspection things, especially aroung love and marriage. The approach to understand marriage by getting into a contract marriage isn't necessarily a new one, but did not feel cliched here (along with other ideas which could have been).Definately more suitable for mature audience, but can be enjoyed by everyone.The beginning was so damn good and even the lines were much more hard hitting in the beginning. The ending felt slightly weaker (could have been a 9 for me if they could carry the momentum of the starting till the end) since the beginning was so damn good, but still overall it was a good series!!
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Scary 36 Episodes, but the makers didn't mess it up (more like a 8 or 8.25 tho)
I dread when I am starting a series which is 20 episodes long (the only reasoon I almost start Vincenzo but quickly switch to a 12 episode series).. so I was highly skeptic while starting this series. I started it because of the short where the blind FL decide to sleep with ML early on (both cos the scene was really touching and because this perticular disease runs in my family genes) and I had all the intention of leaving it in the middle if it felt draggy.But I am happy that it did not !!! 36 episodes didn't feel too long thanks to the balanced story and it's pacing. The actors did a good job keeping us engaged and I throughly enjoy the show. The reason I gave it a 8.5 is because of my bias i.e. it did not felt draggy with a long runtime (which I absolutely dislike) and cos it hit close to my heart (due to my family history).
Response to some criticisms
- Too much focus on the money - I found this point to be stupid honestly..the whole story does revolve around money, AS IT SHOULD !!! Finding such large amount by a poor family will be their main concern, we can't just forget the anxiety and focus on romance etc (even tho I found enough of romance as well as drama in it)
- Long run time- Yes, but since it was well paced, I didn't bother me (also easily finding it on YouTube helped as well)
- The SitCom like direction- At some points it did bother me, but not too much. Cos we are used to Netflix like directions, we tend to be less open to other experiments
So overall, found it to be a good drama. Don't overthink, just start watching it !
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Prime example of gripping storytelling (9.25)
Recently my anxiety had been making me see series in 1.5-2x speed whenever it was becoming slow (and I am not talking about average dramas, but even the good ones), cos I could wait for the 'High' scenes. But this series had such a good story and the way it was presented, that it kept me gripped throughout the series (especially in the later half).Many felt the last 2 episodes were rushed, but I prefer what the makers did, as compared to risking it to stretch it and milk it by making it 20 episodes long. I agree it had the potential, and perhaps one more episode could have been made without actually losing the quality of the drama, but honestly, it isn't a very big deal for me. They tried ending it on the high, and it kinda worked.
Otherthan that, I absolutely loved the series. The Songs, the story and omg the acting !!! I just loved them all ❤️
Highly recommended
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Nice expansion of the Hollywood Movie 17 Again
I like the Hollywood movie 17 again and was looking for something fun and light to watch, hence I started this. But it is anything but Light.The series nicely developed it into a family drama with lots of emotional depth between various relations (husband wife mainly, but also between parents and kids). Overall I enjoyed the series but some scenes and moments could have been developed much more to make them more impactful (eg, being a Basketball fan, the last Final match felt rather light/shallow... ). But the aspect of gender descriminarion and ageism at workplace and society was depicted very well through out the series.
The movie is more on the funny side where as the series is much more drama leaning and emotional (focusing on regrets). Also everyonce in a while I kind of played the series at 1.5 but for not very long (not sure if it was cos of the pacing of the series or due to my anxious nature which can't sit still 😂)
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Good Music, Okay story
Japanese Obsession with Geniuses continue.Maybe I would have rated it a 8 if I knew the actors and was used to Japanese direction style. I mean there way nothing wrong with it, but maybe I am just too much into korean story telling right now.
Coming to the actual review, the series tarted out okay but knida got luke warm in the end. Although the Lead genius actor acted fine, but I couldn't really fell into his charm, which I felt was important for the second half to be held up (hence my disappointment from the second half).
I liked the music tho
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Writing it as a Non-Korean
One of the most repulsive first episodes (because of too many Korean linguistic puns, which I think it was hard for non-native speakers to understand and laugh on).But continued watching it out of perseverance, and finally when it was getting better and I was feeling connected to the characters...the series ENDED abruptly. I didn't see that coming at all.
I always prefer smalled no. of episodes but this is the first time I am saying about any series that it should have had 16 episodes. Not because the story was good, but because when I was finally getting connected it just ended
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