MickeyMouse

I’m genuinely baffled by these casting choices.
Moon Ga-young has noticeably declined as an actor since *Tempted*. I still don’t know where all the potential she showed back then went, because now she feels more like a commercial model posing in front of the camera rather than actually inhabiting her characters. She can’t rely on striking poses and pretty shots for a character like SuA, IYKYK.

Choi Woo-shik is completely miscast as Ui-hyeon. Anyone who has read the manhwa will immediately understand why this just doesn’t work.

And Haesu—my boy 🥹—arguably the most layered and complex character in the entire story, reduced to casting that lacks the experience and gravitas the role demands.

As if that weren’t enough, compressing this story into just 12 episodes (assuming that’s the final call) feels almost disrespectful to the source material. This narrative clearly needs at least 16–20 episodes to breathe and land properly.

Overall, the production decisions are not just questionable—they’re genuinely mind-boggling.

The so-called idol look / “pretty boys” are mass-produced in Korea—same hairstyles, same styling, overly white-washed visuals, extremely edited photoshoots, no uniqueness whatsoever. Most of them look alike and can barely act.

ABY, on the other hand, is one of those rare male actors in Korea—especially in the drama world—who embraces his age and natural features. He stands out because his looks are natural, distinctive, and globally appealing. His proportions are chef’s kiss 😍. And most importantly, he can actually act—he doesn’t rely just on surface-level appeal, unlike others.

I am watching this one for comedy😂😁

Are you done? After calling everyone else wrong for questioning his acting skills — even though everyone stated their views as personal opinions — your responses got way too personal, exaggerated, and honestly show how obsessed you are with him. I get it: you’re head over heels, blind in love, totally worshipping him — fine, do your thing. But whether you like it or not, I’ll say it again and again — he is a below-average actor, and his co-stars (most of the previous ones) are the ones who actually carried him. If his acting is 30 percent of the show, his co-stars are pulling 70 percent.

IU will probably be doing the same in this drama; the acting load will mostly fall on her. There’s a very solid reason he was paired with a good actor like IU— even though I have my issues with her sticking to the same genres, she is still 100 times better actor than him and can fill the gaps in his skills, just like his other co-stars did.

Blind fans like you are exactly why so many K-drama actors never improve. Lee Min-ho, Cha Eun-woo, BWS, etc. — they all fall into the same “famous but under-skilled” category.

And let me make this crystal clear — BWS became famous after "LR", but it was never because of his acting skills. It was for other obvious reasons (apparently women in the audience love raising men on pedestals, even the ones who don’t deserve it (btw, there are plenty of them); I wish they would show that same energy toward female actors as well 😔).

And just because someone points out his lack of skill doesn’t mean they hate him — it means they’re neutral and practical. I have no time to hate on him or anyone in general, so get off your high horse.

I’m done arguing with you. From your tone and language, it’s clear you have no idea what a truly skilled and a well-rounded actor is — so live in your hypothetical world, good for you.

Finally, make sure you read this and get agitated again 😛, because I’m planning to block you after that only — or, you can be free to block me first.✌️

I don’t think she’ll have a crush on SML. This is a Hong Sisters drama, and their storytelling is usually very straightforward when it comes to romance. Second leads are there to create moments of tension or emotional contrast, but the core love story is never in doubt. From the very beginning, it’s clear that the main leads are emotionally locked in with each other, and that dynamic doesn’t really waver

I’ve watched Strong Girl Nam-soon as well and sorry to say this but his performance was one of the weakest villain/antagonist performances I’ve ever seen in K-drama land. If that counts as “strong” then I’m not sure where our standards for acting are going.

The intensity, grit, and underlying tension that usually define a strong antagonist felt lacking and never really showed in his screen presence or acting. I agree that the drama in general did not have much substance and was all over the place, but his character was the only one that was written relatively well compared to the others. That’s why I was expecting a stronger and better character portrayal—something he didn’t deliver.

And this is just not me most of the general audience and even critics have pointed that out.

Sorry, this one is a little long.

I never talked about *Lovely Runner* or its success—that was never the point. The statement was simple: BWS fits certain types of characters and is limited as an actor. As you said, he perfectly fits *20th Century Girl* and *Lovely Runner*. He shines in roles where he plays the “perfect guy—the green flag” type, an image women admire, which is why it works so well.

Fitting a role means the casting was right—not that the actor elevated it, at least in those two cases. I also firmly believe Sunjae’s and Woon-ho's characters resonated with the audience roughly 70% due to writing and story structure, and 30% due to BWS’s acting.

Lastly, I’m not saying he’s bad; he just shines brightest when he has a strong team around him—good writing, talented co-actors, and solid production all help elevate his performance. That’s a limitation, not an insult—and it’s fair to point out without turning it into blind praise.

(P.S- please don't say all actors need those things cuz there are plenty of actors around the world who have made their name without that kind of support, 80 percent based on their skills✌️).

After going through IU’s body of work, I’ve come to realise that she is a "genre-specific actress". She excels in slice-of-life and melodrama (My Mister, Broker, WLGYT—I loved her performances here), but falls flat in most other genres.

BWS shines in roles where the character is written to be charming and likable no matter what—"Sunjae" is the prime example. The writing, his fellow actors and production team does most of the work for him, not his performance, though I hope he’s improved since LR.

Saw the teaser for this one and from that alone, I already noticed shades of Jang Man-wol in IU’s character, and in my personal opinion, it remains one of her weakest performances, including "Dream", since 2018 so as of now I am sceptical for this one. Still, I’ll give it a watch because I genuinely want IU to prove me wrong—that she can excel beyond two similar genres🤞.

As for BWS, my expectations are minimal. He’ll likely just exist on screen, read his lines, and depend heavily on his co-star’s performance, much like in "LR".

**This is purely a personal observation, nothing against either actor. People interpret performances differently—some may agree, some may not, and that’s fine. Kindly remain respectful and free of derogatory language towards anyone.

No one is dragging anyone here. One account is more than enough for me to state my unbiased opinion, which is based on facts and on properly watching GYJ’s dramas.

She is a very pretty actor, but she is below average as an actress—and I can say that repeatedly because her own body of work supports it. Even professional critics have pointed this out.

I don’t believe in idolising anyone, so please spare me that argument.

And about the whole “chopped ML” thing — honestly, I don’t even understand what that’s supposed to mean🤣 😂. The reality is, GYJ can’t afford to be paired with pretty boys like Cha Eun-woo (or honestly, 80% of male actors in Korea), and the reason is simple: both they and she are below-average actors. Casting a pair like that would be a disaster for any production.

Right now, GYJ needs actors who are seasoned enough to carry a show on their shoulders and compensate for her weak acting. That’s exactly why her company is strategically placing her alongside actors of that caliber. They’ll end up doing most of the heavy lifting, while she still walks away with the maximum popularity and output (her brand deals) — just like in her previous projects, because she has the kind of visuals that the Korean industry knows how to package and sell extremely well.

From a business standpoint, and for GYJ at this stage of her career, it’s actually a very smart strategy by her company, at least in my opinion.

Saying she’s “finally” being shown as pretty in another drama is completely wrong. From Sweet Home 1 to Resident Playbook, every drama has made sure her looks are front and center. Her visuals are literally her only real asset — her acting has added zero to very little to the overall value of her projects — and production teams know this. They aren’t fools, which is why they’ve always highlighted the one thing she’s actually cast for: her visuals.

Even in Resident Playbook, where she was supposed to be an overworked resident, she looked flawless from head to toe, with perfect hair, makeup, and styling. Why would any production deliberately strip away the one thing she brings to the table? Kindly go watch her work — that’s when you’ll realize this comment doesn’t hold up at all.

Look, I agree with the latter half of your comment, but that opening line was rude and unnecessary.

Yes, they would have reacted the exact same way. Even people who watch Eunho have always openly admitted that he isn’t a good actor—they tune in purely for his visuals.(And honestly, I still don’t understand how people choose to waste that much time on something like that, whatever)

Also, as a final note, I’m not a fan of Yuna’s acting but compared to Eunho, she is the better actor.

I never thought I’d say this, but I didn’t enjoy Ahn Eun-jin’s acting in this drama. The love I had for her after *My Dearest* and *Hospital Playlist* just didn’t carry over here—it simply didn’t connect with me at all 😭. And it’s not just about a poorly written character; her performance itself wasn’t doing much either.

As for Jang Ki-yong, I’ve always found him to be a below-average actor, and he’s still the same—nothing new. I also didn’t feel any chemistry between the leads whatsoever. Overall, the show ended up being a huge disappointment for me. I’ll wait and hope for a better project for Eun-jin next.

They actually handed her an award for that performance? At this point, Korean award bodies are starting to feel like a joke. This year delivered so many genuinely strong, layered performances in film, yet they chose to reward this role and this level of acting. I’m honestly at a loss for words.

Please. Nowhere on earth does she look 40, and from no angle does he look like someone in his early 20s either. What you’re actually seeing is the production doing what it always does in this genre—stacking filters on the ML to give him an idol-like glow while toning them down for the FL to sell a plain, girl-next-door image. Funny thing is, put the same woman in a chaebol heiress or fashion driven role and suddenly those glossy filters reappear, making her look polished, youthful, and ultra put-together. So no, this has nothing to do with age. It’s just visual marketing 101 by korean drama production teams where they sell a character, not reality.

I’m not sure whether she’s overrated or not, but after watching *Dear X* and comparing her performance to this and her past work, one thing is clear: she needs to stick to this kind of genre. This is where she truly shines. To be brutally honest, she’s just not meant for other genres like rom-coms, comedy, melodrama, etc. Her performances in those genres in the past were below average. So I hope she continues in this space — it’s genuinely fun to see her in roles like these, at least here she doesn’t look bored or give the ‘why am I even doing this’ kind of expressions that she often did in her past works, especially since 2016.

I’m not saying good writing can magically fix a bad actor. In this case, the writing matched Hwang In-Youp’s limited acting range perfectly, so he looked better — not because he improved, but because the material sat perfectly within his skill zone. If you compare his earlier work (that’s why I asked you to check them out), he keeps repeating the same acting nuances and expressions, so for me it didn’t feel like growth, just good alignment. But of course, that’s only my perspective, and I completely respect yours. Acting is subjective, so we can just enjoy it differently.

He’s honestly a boring actor — mostly just face value. In this project, his character worked because the writing carried him, not his acting. If you ever get the time, watch him in some of his other shows; he’s just plain bad there, and that’s when you’ll realize his hype is mostly because of his looks, just like many other Korean actors.

Kindly observe his acting — don’t just drool over his face 🤤. I’ve done that before😉, and later realized that’s not how I should judge an actor. It’s their actual skills that need to be evaluated.

Not so much for Dear X, because its production company has already ensured wide reach by distributing it across multiple platforms tailored to different regions and continents. So I don’t think being on Netflix would have made a major difference for Dear X in terms of exposure or competitive advantage.

But for Manipulated, I still feel its reach has been significantly affected. Since Disney+ operates only in select regions, that limited availability naturally reduces its potential audience and overall impact.