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I fell in love with this series. One of the sweetest and most comforting shows I’ve ever watched. The whole “my brother’s friend” trope was exactly what I needed. The chemistry between the main characters was overflowing from the screen, which was wonderful. They were just as amazing to each other — mutual support and being willing to do absolutely anything for the other person. The kissing scenes were beautiful, but honestly, all of their scenes together were. As for the side characters, I also liked how they were written — every single one of them was understandable and well developed.
The only thing that really bothered me was the beginning, where they cast a younger version of the female lead but not of the male lead. The age difference between them was 5 years, but it felt more like at least 10.

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I got completely sucked into this series; I watched each subsequent episode with real curiosity, wanting to uncover the truth. A lot was happening here—probably too much for some people—but I personally liked it. Plenty of secrets and dirty laundry on both families’ sides.

I’ll try to briefly go over everything, although for the first time I actually find it difficult to do so. Let’s start with the first main couple—Hong Hui Ju & Baek Sa Eon. Hong Hui Ju was definitely my favorite character. Her development throughout the series was very interesting. Through love, she gained self-confidence and the courage to finally fight for her true “self.” Overall, their relationship was amazing—despite many adversities, they were the most important people to each other and never doubted the meaning of their relationship once they understood their feelings. They fought for each other’s happiness, and therefore for their shared happiness as well. They didn’t push each other away when more brutal facts from their past came to light; instead, they supported one another. With the exception of the final detail that made him decide to leave to atone—but fortunately, she found him and put an end to that.

Now let’s move on to both families, where the situation was the most complicated. That complexity caused some storylines to remain underdeveloped. It’s hard to describe it coherently, because so many things are interconnected, but I’ll try.

It’s hard to even know where to start. In short, you could say that everyone was mentally ill, but I’ll begin with the real Paik Se-eon (the Hijacker). From childhood he had psychopathic tendencies, and instead of sending him to therapy, his family decided to cover up his murders and lock him in a room—then they tried to kill him, replacing him with the main protagonist. Sim Gyu Jin, the mother who later tried again to shield him from responsibility, led to his death, and she herself rotted in prison—even though she could have saved him by locking him up in prison or a psychiatric hospital. Baek Eui Yong—the father—cared only about his career, for which he was willing to do anything, even renounce his family, despite not being any better than them himself. Why was he free and not in prison? He knew about his son’s crimes and pretended that the kidnapped child was his. The same goes for the stepfather of the female lead, Hong Il Gyeong—he also knew about his son’s murder at the hands of that family and stayed silent about it until the very end. This whole matter was basically swept under the rug, and no one was held accountable.

Baek Jang Ho—his “grandfather,” who later suddenly turns out to be his biological father. WTF? Why was this dropped on us as casually as if they were talking about what they had for dinner yesterday? It wasn’t developed at all and came completely out of nowhere. Did he abandon him as a child? And then take him back, knowing he was his son? Who was his mother, then? And why did he grow up with Jung Sang Hun/Jung Jin Seok? So many questions and zero answers. It feels like this was thrown in just to force the main couple’s separation because of his guilt.

Outside of all that psychiatric mess, there was also the female lead’s mother, who wasn’t much better. Kim Yeon Hui forced her daughter, for a stupid reason, to pretend she couldn’t speak after the accident, and later forced her into marriage. She treated her horribly—and then what? Suddenly, after her disappearance, she realized her mistakes. The problem is that we never saw any sincere conversation between them, only a sweet scene of them sitting at the table in a warm family atmosphere. And then there’s the older half-sister—Hong In A—I had mixed feelings about her. At first I thought she was just pretending and would turn out to be manipulative. Later it turned out that wasn’t exactly the case, but I still couldn’t fully like her. She manipulated in a different way—she wanted to get closer to her sister by separating her from a relationship she believed was bad. She wanted her freedom, but at the same time couldn’t accept that her sister felt free with him and truly loved him. She had a big influence on his decision to leave.

In short, the only normal person in this whole family fucking mess—someone you could actually like and sympathize with—was the female lead’s biological father, Na Jin Cheol. The problem was that he was staying in a facility, so we didn’t get many scenes with him, and he didn’t remember much himself, so he couldn’t really help untangle the chaos.

In that chaos, there was one more person: Park Do Jae. I knew that handsome face had a second layer to it, so I wasn’t surprised he turned out to be a “traitor.” Still, I excuse him. He was seeking justice for his brother and redeemed himself once he learned that the main character wasn’t the one he wanted revenge on. I’m glad that in the end we were shown that they forgave each other and started working together again—although I don’t necessarily understand what exactly they’re doing now, lol.

The last storyline is the second couple: Na Yu Ri & Ji Sang U. At first, they both had feelings for members of the main couple, but they weren’t annoying about it. In the end, they got together, and I rooted for that throughout the entire series—but at the same time, I feel unsatisfied. This storyline was very shallow, considering they’re also main characters. On top of that, we were given signs along the way that they were starting to feel something for each other, but the final scene announcing that they’re together slightly changed my perception of them as a couple. I had the impression that Ji Sang U was still looking at Hong Hui Ju with a strange feeling, which makes me unsure about the sincerity of his feelings toward Na Yu Ri—but I prefer to convince myself that this look simply meant he was happy about his friend’s happiness.

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It’s a very pleasant and comforting drama to watch. In my opinion, it isn’t particularly gripping, but it’s perfect for someone looking for a calm love story about feelings rekindled after many years. From beginning to end, the male lead is clearly in love and waits for the right moment to confess. The female lead’s feelings develop gradually, and at first she doesn’t even admit them to herself. At the same time, I had the impression that some things happened too quickly. This feeling was reinforced by their sudden marriage. At times, I simply couldn’t see a clear cause-and-effect progression, even though the story tried to justify it by saying that she wanted to marry someone quickly - that argument didn’t really convince me. It all happened right after their “breakup,” which she initiated because she was uncertain, and at that point nothing had actually changed. She was still unsure about his feelings. Even so, it was still a sweet and comfortable relationship to watch, especially for anyone who just wants to switch their brain off.

The second couple was also enjoyable to watch. They were a bit silly, somewhat childish, and exaggerated, but overall they added color to the series by serving as a contrast to the more mature main couple.

As for the remaining characters, I’d describe most of them as rather bland. They weren’t developed much and didn’t feel particularly important, which is why most of them aren’t very memorable. Still, most of them were fine, and overall there isn’t really a truly hateable character who would make your blood boil - maybe with the exception of the male lead’s father, but he doesn’t appear that often.

The only character who felt truly puzzling to me was Chen Xi, the woman who studied with the male lead. It seemed like she was in love with him, but those feelings were never reciprocated. However, this was never clearly explained to us, so whether that was actually the case is left entirely to speculation.

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I recommend this drama to anyone who needs something light and very enjoyable to watch.

Let’s start with the main couple - Cong Rong & Wen Shao Qing. Their relationship was sweet and comforting from beginning to end. They liked each other almost from the very beginning, and once they became a couple, there wasn’t a single moment where they doubted the value of their relationship. There were no unnecessary arguments or melodrama between them (well, there was one pointless argument, but it wasn’t serious), just a sweet, almost perfect relationship between two people who fit each other incredibly well and loved each other deeply. Watching them was a pleasure, and their chemistry was wonderful. Aside from the sweetness, they also had HOT scenes - their kisses were genuinely good. They were each other’s priority. They valued each other’s well-being more than their own and fought for it. Most importantly, they knew how to listen to each other and talk to each other. It’s also worth mentioning that their story began in childhood. Sweet - but also a little scary - was the fact that he waited for a girl he had known only briefly as a child for so many years. :D

Now let’s move to the second couple - Zhou Cheng Cheng & Wen Rang. They were opposites. She was loud, open, emotional - though her feelings weren’t always stable. He was quiet, distant, cold, closed-off, and pining for his ex for about ten years. Here we got much more drama, which wasn’t a downside. We gradually watched him open up to her. Feelings slowly started to develop, which threw him into emotional chaos, because he had been waiting for another girl for years. And of course, that girl had to appear. That’s when he realized his true feelings were for Zhou - but it was already too late to stop the snowball that had started rolling. Although honestly, it could have been stopped with a conversation, but in their case communication didn’t come naturally; they had to learn it - especially him. Despite everything, their relationship was interesting to watch, and the drama between them felt natural rather than exhausting. The two couples were a perfect contrast and complemented each other well.
However, with Zhou Cheng Cheng and Wen Rang I found two small flaws. First: Zhou still doesn’t know that the kiss in the taxi actually happened and wasn’t just a dream. Second: I really wanted more scenes between them after they officially got together! Everywhere it says they were also a main couple, but they definitely felt much more like a secondary one.

Now let’s talk about the admirers of these two couples. The ones connected to the main couple were perfectly fine. They knew when to give up. Qin Chu caused some chaos at first, but stepped back when she noticed the two were into each other, and she was actually kind and supportive afterward. Shangguan Yi didn’t exactly back off, but he wasn’t harmful. He threw in a few comments here and there, but quickly stepped back and behaved normally. Though I’ll admit, I wish we’d gotten a scene where he confessed his feelings to the heroine, because then she would’ve realized that the main lead’s jealousy was justified.
But when it comes to the “admirer” - the ex-girlfriend - of the second male lead, she was extremely annoying. Completely self-centered, even though she treated him like trash. She didn’t know when to stop, even after seeing he had turned toward another girl, and desperately kept trying to get close to him despite him showing not even a hint of interest. In my opinion, she was the only irritating character in the entire series.

The last point I want to address is the families. The best, of course, were the female lead’s mother and her stepfather, but the male lead’s parents and his grandparents - who were the second male lead’s parents - were equally wonderful. Watching scenes with all of them was genuinely pleasant. As for the others, they were fine/neutral, and we didn’t get any extremely annoying or toxic characters (though the second female lead’s parents were toxic at the beginning).
I’ll also mention the female lead’s cousin - Zhong Zhen. Overall, I’m a fan of his personality; he made me laugh many times. A wonderful character with one flaw. I wanted to tear him apart and swore I’d name him my enemy of the series if he interrupted the main couple’s HOT scene one more time - luckily for him, he didn’t.

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I loved this drama. It’s such an enjoyable show to watch. There aren’t any annoying characters whose sole purpose is to irritate the viewer or cause unnecessary problems for the leads. I really liked the main characters and how they developed. Nan Xing is a bit silly at times, but she’s determined to achieve her goals and doesn’t give up easily. Xiao Wu Di may seem like a villain on paper, but we quickly see his good side, and he gradually becomes a genuinely likable person - without losing his bold, mischievous charm. I loved their relationship from the very beginning. Not only did they have amazing chemistry, but there was also this natural ease between them - you could just feel that they genuinely enjoyed being around each other. Everything about their connection felt real, so much so that it moved me to tears several times.

A huge plus for me was also the main heroine’s mother. An Ni Na’s character was wonderful and definitely one of the best parents I’ve seen in Chinese dramas. There was no unnecessary drama - just a sincere portrayal of a mother’s real love for her child.

Mao Xiao Jun was also a very interesting character, and while watching, I couldn’t help but wonder how his story with Nan Xing might have unfolded if the fire hadn’t happened. I’d love to see an alternate storyline about that.

And I’ll go against a lot of opinions here - I actually liked the secondary couple, Lu Zi Chen and Ye Qing. Their relationship was interesting to me, and I rooted for them quite a lot. However, that changed once she went back to being his assistant. From that point on, something broke. The dynamic became strange, their storyline felt shallow, and the proposal scene was just weird.

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A very good drama that I can wholeheartedly recommend. I had a great time watching it - it was genuinely enjoyable. I absolutely loved the female lead: she was strong-willed, confident, refused to let anyone walk over her, and was fully devoted to love. Of course, she did have one flaw - during conflicts, she couldn’t bring herself to listen to the other side. I also loved the relationship between the main characters. Her initial love that turned into hatred, his realization of who she really was, and his fight for a second chance - it was all very engaging to watch. I also liked that obstacles kept being thrown in their way, yet they always managed to overcome them.

The secondary couple’s storyline was just as interesting. It’s a shame that toward the end, it became quite underdeveloped, because I definitely saw potential for much more there. The same goes for the plot about releasing their game. Since the drama’s main story revolved around it, I really missed seeing the final touches before its release, as well as the actual moment it came out. It would’ve been nice to see that they truly made a big impact on China’s gaming scene and created something innovative. After all, throughout most of the show, we were told it would be the first game of its kind in China - yet in the end, all we got was a short celebration of millions of downloads. That didn’t feel satisfying to me.

One more thing about Su Zheng. At one point in the series, I got the impression that he wasn’t actually in love with her and was just trying to provoke Gu Xun - which would’ve been both funnier and more interesting. This feeling came from episode 15, during the cake scene, when he approached the main couple looking like he was trying not to laugh - but in the end, it turned out differently :(

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Overall, I watched this series a long time ago and honestly got a bit scared by the opinions, because back then I really liked it.

It was a show I watched with great pleasure, and I couldn’t wait to start the next episodes and learn more about the characters’ past and future. The relationship between them is very enjoyable, and the chemistry practically jumps off the screen (plus lots of sweet scenes — I’m in love). The characters are very well developed, and I appreciated how the series shows problems faced not only by the main couple. I really liked how childhood trauma can affect adult life. On top of that, the side couples’ storylines were interesting — for me, the best one outside the main couple was definitely Kim Ji-a and Go Gwi-nam. From the very beginning, I was rooting for them to end up together…

SPOILER!!!!
And thankfully, I wasn’t disappointed. Well, maybe just a little, because I would have liked to see a lot more of them on screen after they got together, but I can survive that — the most important thing is that they ended up together in the end. The only thing that really annoyed me was that the male lead initially allowed her to get close to his brother, even though he knew it wasn’t his brother who was kidnapped with her, but him. I figured it was due to his trauma and, as I later learned, also because he pretended in front of his family that he didn’t remember it — but it was still idiotic to me. Not enough to lower my rating, though, because I’m simply in love with this series.

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I think this series is fine for a one-time watch, but nothing more than that. It wasn’t engaging enough to linger in my mind afterward or make me want to come back to it later. While watching, I had the impression that it had a lot of potential, but that potential was wasted. Many elements of the series felt like filler to me, and even if they weren’t meant to be, the script turned them into such. A lot of potentially interesting topics weren’t developed, and some of the solutions were simply absurd.

Starting with the main culinary storyline, which for most of the series was the most interesting and, in my opinion, the best handled one — toward the end it became full of absurdities. Beginning with the fact that no one at the restaurant knew they had been awarded three stars and only found out from other people or the internet. Then there was the biggest flop, which at the same time had great potential: the cooking battle — how on earth did no one verify the results if it was announced as a win rather than a draw? Why did the guy who was the head of Diamond storm off offended instead of explaining the situation? An absurd situation, topped off by the cherry on the cake: a family breakfast and a mother who suddenly allowed them to run the restaurant, even though she herself hadn’t changed for the better at all. In the end, the restaurant that stole recipes and falsified competition results kept its three stars, and no one tried to do anything about it. The falsification of the results of the first competition was also never explained. I also don’t understand what his mother was planning next. Some new restaurant — but why all these mind games?

As for the main couple — Mo Yeon Ju and Han Beom U — I have very mixed feelings. Individually, I find them interesting characters, especially him. I think he was very well written and acted. It was enjoyable to watch his character development, and you could really see how he changed, began to understand his mistakes, and tried to fix them. The only thing that puzzles me in his case is the storyline about his father, which was either never mentioned or handled so superficially that I don’t even remember it. She was also an interesting character to me. I liked her confidence and feisty personality, although at times I felt it was a bit over the top. However, in her case, the storyline about being abandoned by her parents felt like filler. It had potential and could have been interesting if it had been developed somehow — for example, if she had found her biological parents. When it comes to their relationship, though, my feelings were extremely mixed. Sometimes I liked the chemistry between them, especially from his side. From start to finish, his feelings and chemistry were clearly visible. With her, however, it was inconsistent. This was especially noticeable to me when her ex returned (which was also filler, but more on that later). I had the impression that she smiled more around her ex, was nicer to him, and that the male lead was like a clingy nuisance who was getting in their way. Maybe that’s a misinterpretation, but that’s how it came across to me. What also annoyed me was that the male lead never told her that he wasn’t the one who stole her recipes and that he had tried to prevent it earlier — in fact, he never really told her at all.

Next, I want to expand on the storyline with her ex, which I also consider filler — again, mainly because of the script. First of all, the whole idea of going to Japan with him was stupid. At that point, she was already involved with the male lead; they had been on a date, and she informed him about her departure only by letter. On top of that, she flew there with her ex. She could have gone alone, and she certainly didn’t need to spend all that time with him in Japan — visiting places from the past, shopping together, or cooking together. To me, this shows respect — or rather, a lack of respect — for a new, potential partner. Although this alone wouldn’t yet make it filler. The problem is that after the male lead stopped the merger and they returned to Korea, Le Murir was never mentioned again — not the restaurant, not the chef, not his illness, nothing. The whole topic just vanished into thin air, which is why I consider it filler. On top of that, I really didn’t like how Jeon Min, who harmed the restaurant’s founder’s health by throwing away his medication, faced no consequences whatsoever — on the contrary, he was praised and hugged by him because he supposedly cared so much about Le Murir. In what way? By selling it to a company that would later cause it to go bankrupt? I also still don’t understand why he tried to lure the female lead to Le Murir while simultaneously pushing for a merger that he knew would lead to bankruptcy.

As for other characters, I’ll only mention Jin Myeong Suk and Sin Chun Seung. I liked their conflicts and the way they teased each other. They made me laugh many times, so I consider them a nice addition. Sin Chun Seung’s character development was also interesting, and I’m glad he started doing better, finally proved his worth to his father, and took over the restaurant. The only thing I don’t understand here is the storyline with the actor from “Lovely Jogger.” Did they know each other from school? Maybe I just didn’t catch some of the comedy.

In my opinion, there’s no point in discussing the other characters, as they weren’t interesting enough to really stick in my memory or make me want to write more about them. A few pleasant characters, a few “semi-villains,” and that’s about it.

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Up until the final episode, I considered this series to be great. I wasn’t bored for a single moment, and the entire plot kept me genuinely interested in every next episode. The whole moms’ team was fucking awesome, and it was a real pleasure watching them shut up all the doubters and support each other. The chemistry between the main leads — Ko Da Rim & Kong Ji Hyeok — was AMAZING from the very beginning and clearly palpable for the viewer. On top of that, their relationship itself was very enjoyable to watch. Yes, there were many misunderstandings that could have been solved with honesty, but at no point did I feel their relationship was toxic (a so-called red flag). Maybe with one exception — the pool incident, where in my opinion he crossed a line by “forcing” her to jump into the pool even though she couldn’t swim. Other than that, they were an enormous support for each other and would have risked everything for one another. Their moms were also wonderful, and watching their friendship was a delight — especially how, thanks to her mom, his mom started getting back on her feet and decided to fight for her own happiness.

However, the last episode was, in my opinion, tragic on many levels. The idea of his memory loss itself wasn’t bad, but dumping it all into the final episode absolutely was. Because of that, we spent half of the finale watching her pathetic attempts to restore his memory. I find it hard to understand why she didn’t think earlier that a kiss might bring his memory back, considering they had already talked about it once. On top of that, Kang Gyeong Min knew that a kiss was what sparked his friend’s feelings in the first place, so it’s also weird that he didn’t tell her about it. It’s even harder for me to understand why his mother didn’t try to talk to him and explain that Ko Da Rim wasn’t a scammer and that they really were together. He accused everyone else of lying, but he loved and trusted his mother, so he wouldn’t have suspected her.

Then came their one-year separation, during which he still knew nothing — even though he went back to work at the place where they had previously worked together, where a scandal had just happened and which he must have known about. Hell, the media surely published plenty of articles about them dating. Did he seriously think everyone was lying to him? Then there was a random encounter where he suddenly remembered everything, followed by quick music montages of their moments together, half-assed proposals, etc. Overall, the final episode left plot holes, unresolved threads, or storylines that were treated lazily because the creators decided to cram everything into that single episode.

One of those unresolved threads concerned Ko Da Rim. She flew to Jeju Island to find her sister, but instead she met Kong Ji Hyeok, they kissed, and suddenly the sister plot completely disappeared. We don’t know whether she found her or what came out of their conversation — and I consider that storyline quite important. After all, it was because of her sister that the main leads met in the first place, and also because of her that Ko Da Rim looked for a job and ended up working for him.

Now let’s talk about the second main “couple”: Yoo Ha Yeong & Kim Seon U. In the first episode, I was convinced Yoo Ha Yeong would be an annoying character impossible to like, sabotaging the main couple. Turns out — she became one of my favorite characters in the entire series. Very warm and kind, yet persistent and fighting for what she wanted. Her relationship with his son was wonderful and genuinely moving at times (the school performance). Because of that, as the series went on, I felt more and more sorry for her.

I probably differ from many people here, but personally, I didn’t see a happy ending for them — at least not at that time. She completely fell for him, but from his side those feelings were never there. Even the scene where he tended to her wounds while she slept didn’t come from romantic feelings in my opinion — it came from him simply being a good person. So I had no issue with him. From the beginning, he clearly defined where they stood and rejected her instead of giving her false hope. However, I do have a major issue with the scene of their meeting years later, which suggested that “maybe” something could happen. Not the fact that the meeting happened — I don’t deny that after years they could meet again and feelings might develop on his side once he healed from his past love — but personally, I didn’t like that scene. It portrayed her somewhat as a desperate woman approaching him after five years while he was talking to another woman and saying they might be together in the future.

Now let’s move on to the most important antagonists.

I’ll start with the one person I developed a tiny bit of sympathy for — Kong Ji Hye. Did I hate her throughout the entire series? YES. Did I change my mind at the end? NO. BUT that doesn’t change the fact that I understood her in a twisted way and felt sorry for her in some aspects. Since childhood, she carried the label of “the mistress’s daughter.” Her father took her in only to silence his own guilt. She worked hard, but her father was never going to appreciate her anyway. The man she loved constantly manipulated her and treated her like trash. Does that excuse her actions? No. But it makes her more than a one-dimensional villain — she’s someone who never experienced love. In the end, she even turned that piece of shit over to the police, which earned her the only plus point from me out of the whole trio. Maybe I’m naive, but I saw a hidden potential in her to become a good person and hoped someone would help her get there. That didn’t happen — or at least it wasn’t shown. In her case, we also have two unresolved issues: first, what happened to her after she left the company and moved out? Second, she never found out that Yoo Tae Yeong was manipulating her again and actually wanted to use her to buy her father’s company.

The main male lead’s father (he doesn’t deserve to be called a dad) — Kong Chang Ho. There wasn’t a single redeeming quality in this man that could inspire even a shred of sympathy. A man completely blinded by career and money. So much so that he stripped his wife of all happiness and freedom, driving her into depression and anxiety, then blamed her for her condition — and later for fighting back. He treated his children no better. His son was nearly dying in the hospital, and he was worried about his position. He took his daughter in only to appease his guilt. I watched his downfall with great pleasure — losing everything and everyone around him. In the end, he was left alone with nothing — a happy ending.

The final character is Yoo Tae Yeong. No matter how you look at it, he was mentally ill, and I’m honestly surprised he ended up in prison instead of a psychiatric hospital. The actor played him brilliantly — the madness was visible in his eyes from the very beginning. His facial expressions alone showed his manipulative nature. Still, I feel that, just like Kong Ji Hye, he wasn’t evil by nature. His madness was influenced by his father, who also treated his children like shit and constantly belittled him by comparing him to the main lead. Of course, that doesn’t excuse his actions, but it could have added more depth to his character. Either way, I thoroughly enjoyed watching his plan fall apart and seeing him end up in prison, where he got beaten by other inmates and completely abandoned by his family — a happy ending.

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Overall, I consider the series itself to be very good. Although I think the biggest credit goes to the legal storyline, which in my opinion was the most interesting part. It was mainly because of it that I kept watching the next episodes with curiosity, wanting to know how it would develop further. In my view, it strongly saved my overall perception of the series and made up for the underdeveloped remaining storylines. That said, even here I have a few reservations. For example, Qin Shi never found out that it was because of Lan Xiao Ting that she initially didn’t get promoted to the 11th floor, since Lan Xiao Ting didn’t vote for her — even though they were close at the time and she treated Qin Shi like her own daughter.

Now I’ll move on to the other storylines. The first main couple — Qin Shi & Yang Hua. For most of the series, I liked their dynamic. Two completely different people who started out pretending to be in a relationship, but as feelings developed, they both began to change for the better — or at least that’s how it seemed. She started opening up and noticing life beyond work. He began thinking more seriously about his future. They both started to look genuinely happy. We had a very well-done slow burn here — which then got completely destroyed. Everything started falling apart with the divorce plotline. I did understand his decision, but I couldn’t understand the female lead’s actions: despite having feelings for him, she didn’t try to stop him (even though the show tried to explain it somehow). Later it turned into an even bigger circus of two supposedly “adult” people. He suddenly started pretending he wanted to get back together and leave the country with his ex-girlfriend, didn’t tell the female lead that he was doing it for her, and the cherry on top was that they had no contact for seven months after passing each other at the airport — only for him to randomly start living across from her and for them to fall into each other’s arms.
Overall, all of this wouldn’t have been that bad if it had been spread across more episodes (and there were plenty), but instead we got an emotional rollercoaster crammed into the final episode, which simply didn’t work. Still, aside from those last episodes (especially the finale), their relationship was very pleasant to watch.

Yang Hua also got the short end of the stick. We were given one throwaway line about his new job instead of actually developing that storyline. His legal case from his first job — where he was falsely accused — was never resolved either. That whole plot was completely forgotten, along with the fact that Jason Wang was involved. They supposedly suspected him, but later he was convicted for other things and the topic was entirely dropped.

What’s even more absurd? Despite all this circus, they were still the healthiest couple in the show — because the others were such massive red flags that their endings can honestly be called tragic.

Let’s start with Wu Fei & Tao Jun Hui. Tao Jun Hui is engaged to her from the very beginning, yet keeps chasing Qin Shi, whom he’s still in love with, lying to and straight-up manipulating his girlfriend. As for Wu Fei — she annoyed me the most out of the entire cast. Of course, I sympathize with her for having to be with such a loser, but she wasn’t any better herself. Her boyfriend lied to her and had feelings for his ex, and instead of breaking up with him, she supported him and sabotaged the other woman simply for being his ex. She behaved like a spoiled child — which, frankly, she was, thanks to her rich father. The cherry on top was presenting them as having a happy ending, despite the fact that there was no love between them — only dependence on her side and pathetic attempts to replace an ex on his side.
These two characters also have unresolved storylines. Wu Fei — what happened to her after she left her job? We know nothing, aside from a possible return of that “wonderful,” supposedly mutual love. Tao Jun Hui — what did he do with the evidence of s*xual abuse that he saw in Hai Tao’s possession? He said he would help him deal with it, and then not a single word about it again — just like there was no follow-up on Hai Tao’s fate, even though Tao Jun Hui warned him he could lose his license to practice law.

The last equally “healthy” couple were Ren Mei Mei & Qin Wen Yu. Sure, there were moments when I laughed at the absurdity and exaggeration of their relationship, but that doesn’t change the fact that they were in an extremely unhealthy one — which somehow got a happy ending in the form of a baby. Their entire relationship was built on violence, belittling, cheating, and constant fights, followed by showers of overly sweet, exaggerated affection. There was absolutely no ground for a healthy, happy relationship there without therapy, yet the show tried to convince us that they suddenly changed. And not even because of the child. She eventually left him, and we never even found out under what circumstances she returned or how they reconciled — it was simply skipped straight to a happy relationship and childbirth.

I have mixed feelings about the families of the first couple. Qin Shi’s family, considered by everyone to be the “worst,” was actually the best and the most enjoyable to watch. The oldest brother was definitely the highlight — he seemed the most reasonable and normal out of all of them. As for Yang Hua’s family, I have issues — especially with his mother, who was simply irritating. On one hand, she wants her son to get married and settle down; on the other, she constantly causes problems and interferes in the life of an almost 30-year-old man. There was also an absurdity here: his family thought they had been together only recently, while her family thought it had been two years — and how on earth did that never come up in any conversation between them?

Let’s end on a positive note. Li Dai was the queen of this series for me. I genuinely fell in love with her feisty personality, her confidence, and the fact that she kept the female lead’s secret, even when they weren’t friends yet. The duo of Qin Shi and Li Dai was my favorite in the entire show. Both had that “bitchy” vibe — in the best possible sense of the word — and together they were a powerhouse. To this day, I regret that we didn’t get more scenes of them working together, because I was really counting on that.

All in all, a surprisingly large number of things bothered me, which doesn’t quite match the high rating I gave this series — but that’s mainly because I had fun watching it and really enjoyed the legal storyline.

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I had a really great time watching this drama. Above all, it’s heavily exaggerated in many aspects, which often made me laugh, but in contrast to that it also tackled more difficult topics such as the female lead’s struggles with self-acceptance, bullying, and unhealthy family relationships. A huge strength of this series is also its cast of characters. Everyone felt different and interesting, which also applies to the couples and potential couples. I watched almost all of them with genuine interest, and in the end I feel a sense of dissatisfaction that some storylines weren’t further developed, because they had enormous potential for spin-offs centered entirely around them.

Starting with the first main couple - Song U Yeon and Nam Gi Jeong. They were complete opposites. She was introverted, withdrawn, and struggled with self-acceptance. He was overly confident, energetic, and didn’t think about the future, living entirely in the moment (his character was strongly exaggerated and made me laugh many times). Through each other, they both began to change for the better. She slowly opened up, gained confidence, and started to accept herself, while he began thinking about another person and about his own future. This is a first-love, high school relationship, and it shows - which isn’t a flaw. They experience their first kiss, holding hands, but also their first conflicts. In reality, they’re both learning how to be in a relationship. However, I did have one issue with them. I understand the female lead. I know how hard it is to deal with self-acceptance issues and how that can affect relationships, BUT I didn’t like that she was portrayed as innocent in these situations. It was always the male lead who apologized and took the blame every time. The same thing happened in the Ahn Ye Rim situation - she didn’t trust him and instead trusted a girl she had seen for the second time in her life, yet the drama still tried to portray her as the victim.

A perfect contrast to them was the second main couple - Koo Seon Ho and Nam Geu Rin. It was clear that they were older, and as a result their relationship felt more mature, though obviously not fully. This also fit well with the fact that they were both in college - for example, their argument stemming from poor communication. Here we had a long-standing friendship and “sudden” feelings that the female lead tried to resist.

For both of these couples, I would have loved to see what happened next. Dramas are rarely continued, but in this case I see huge potential. The first couple, where she goes to college and he develops his acting/modeling career, and the second couple, where she starts working and he goes off to the military. In my head, it all looks very promising.

On top of that, there were two more potential couples, and I really regret that their stories weren’t developed further. Ko Taeng Ja (Black) and Kwon Hyeok (Khaki) - there was a specific vibe between them that I personally found intriguing. And Byeon Tae Seon and Yeom Se Ra - her departure complicated things, and I’m insanely curious how their story unfolded after her return (in my head they’re together, but I would’ve loved to see it on screen).

Now let’s move on to the family aspect. First, the female lead’s brothers. The younger brother - a genius - whom I really grew to like and who, alongside the female lead, was the character I felt the most sympathy for. That’s why I was happy watching his budding friendship with Moon Bong Gu, because he was finally starting to discover that he, too, could be happy. The older brother was less developed, but I’m mentioning him because his character also intrigued me, and I would’ve gladly learned more about his story.

I won’t touch on the father, since he was absent for most of the series - but the MOTHER. This is the second drama I’ve seen where this actress plays a mother, and for the second time I hated her with all my heart. A mother who failed in life and pours her frustration and incompetence onto her children, forcing them to study and denying them any personal interests. Yes, by the end we get her “redemption” and a tearful backstory from years ago, but that didn’t change how I felt. Throughout the entire series, she was the worst kind of mother imaginable, and that can’t be erased with a single scene.

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The drama itself is very enjoyable to watch. The biggest highlight is the relationship of the main couple - Xiang Yuan and Xu Yan Shi - because, in my opinion, it’s what saved this series. I really enjoyed watching their relationship and the rekindling of their love. They were able to communicate with each other, support one another, and be a huge source of strength for each other. At the same time, I appreciated the moment when she set a boundary so that he wouldn’t sacrifice his dreams for her. I do think the brief breakup was unnecessary, but I treated it more as a short-lived conflict, and fortunately it wasn’t blown out of proportion with any serious attempt to enter a marriage with Feng Jun to save the company. They had wonderful chemistry and plenty of tasteful HOT scenes. It was simply easy to root for them from beginning to end.

In contrast, there’s the second main couple - Gao Leng and Chen Shu. I couldn’t root for them at all; in fact, it was quite the opposite - I didn’t want them to end up together. I didn’t feel any love between them, let alone chemistry. It was painful to watch scene after scene where Gao Leng tried so hard for her, while she kept treating him like a kid, completely failing to appreciate him in any way. That said, Gao Leng himself was a wonderful character, and I really wanted him to find happiness and someone who would truly value him, instead of trying to force him to change.

As for the company-related storyline, I had mixed feelings throughout the series. Sometimes I found it interesting and engaging, and other times I was bored and wished that part could be cut from the episode entirely. The constant obstacles thrown in their way - which were always eventually resolved - became tiring over time. On top of that, one DongHe-related issue was never fully explained. Several “employees” were plotting against the company during its potential downfall, and then they simply didn’t show up at the meeting afterward. What happened to them? It left a noticeable gap. That said, the employees themselves deserve praise - especially those from Velin, mainly from their department (with two exceptions). They were all wonderful. The same goes for Xu Yan Shi’s college friends (with one exception). Among the less obvious standout characters, I’d also highlight Li Yong Biao, whose personality completely won me over - I smiled when he was invited by the employees to celebrate at the end - and Ying Yin Yin. She annoyed me a bit at first, but her silliness also made me laugh, and eventually that was all that remained, so I grew quite fond of her.

Now let’s move on to the segment about annoying characters - and therefore the longest one, even though I’ll still skip some. Let’s start with the worst:
→Feng Jun was the most infuriating of them all. I honestly couldn’t stand seeing his face on screen, I swear. He ran off abroad, practically destroying his friends’ lives in the process, and showed not a shred of concern. Worst of all, by the end of the series he never faced consequences for the crime he committed - the one the male lead was blamed for. Then he comes back and relentlessly pursues the female lead, who has zero interest in him. He cheated in a competition, preventing her from winning, and still thought he was the better choice for her and could give her a better life. An absolute snowman.
→Chairwoman Li Qin and her lover Yang Ping Shan. She, in particular, drove me up the wall. I honestly don’t understand how the female lead’s grandfather managed to stay uninvolved in the company for so many years without noticing her schemes and fraud - but that’s something we’ll never get an answer to. Still, nothing gave me more satisfaction than watching her “clever” plans collapse like a house of cards. Her arrest at the end was the cherry on top.
→Li Chi. This is where my feelings become mixed. On one hand, he did help in the end, but earlier he was plotting against them - something that the characters seemed to conveniently forget. There’s also the issue of the secret photo he took of Chen Shu. Probably because he liked her? Even so, I still find it deeply unsettling and creepy.
→Situ Ming Tian — the FL's grandfather. He made this list simply because I couldn’t understand him. On one hand, he desperately wanted his granddaughter to get married or at least find love. But when she finally did, he suddenly became opposed to it. The supposed connection to her mother doesn’t convince me at all, especially the idea that he didn’t know the male lead was a valuable employee. He was a wealthy man deeply embedded in that world — there’s no way he wouldn’t have heard his name. In my opinion, this plotline was forced in just to create some obstacle to their relationship, and it didn’t make much sense. That said, this did improve later on, and I started to like him more when he became a subtle fan of the male lead, showing it between the lines -for example, by defending him in front of his granddaughter.

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In my opinion, the drama was interesting and very enjoyable to watch. I really liked the focus on botany and animals (especially birds). I’m not usually interested in that kind of thing, nor have I watched any dramas with a similar theme, so it definitely felt fresh and intriguing. I liked how we gradually got to see the male lead’s perception of Yu Mei Ren change over time. The chemistry between the main couple was absolutely wonderful. As the drama went on, I was worried that this chemistry would go to waste - there hadn’t been a single kiss for so long that I started thinking maybe one of the actors had refused to do those scenes. Thankfully, we finally got the kiss scenes, and they were beautiful. I also liked the contrast between the leads - he was calm and composed, while she was more wild and full of life. Over time, though, he learned to embrace a bit of her “craziness,” while she learned to be calmer and listen to others. I was also really happy when, at the end, we saw the main heroine’s brother meet a girl who could become his love interest. Those kinds of details are often skipped, and such characters usually end up alone - so I really appreciated that addition.
Another huge plus for me was the parents. There’s not much to say about the heroine’s parents - they were wonderful, and I watched every scene with them with a smile on my face. But the male lead’s family was a pleasant surprise. Usually, wealthy parents in dramas are portrayed as cold and calculating, caring only about social status or benefits from a relationship. But in this case, his mother turned out to be a genuinely kind person who, instead of opposing their relationship, was actually nice to the female lead and even thanked her.

Now, let’s move on to the secondary couple. I’m a bit conflicted about them. At first, their relationship was interesting to me, but as the story went on, something started to fade. I stopped feeling the same spark between them, and I think the writers lost some of the potential that was there in the beginning. In my opinion, the storyline about the male character losing his leg was unnecessary - it felt forced, as if it was added just to create a reason for their reconciliation.

Aside from that, there were a few other things that didn’t work for me or felt like flaws:
→ The male lead leaving for a year to the U.S. without even saying goodbye to the heroine was just stupid. On top of that, he didn’t contact her at all during that entire time. Saying that he didn’t do it because she blocked him is a ridiculous excuse. He could’ve done anything to explain himself - written her a letter, asked a mutual friend to talk to her, or called/texted her from someone else’s phone. But he did absolutely nothing.
→ The lack of communication between the main couple. Too many secrets, too many things they didn’t talk about - and when the truth finally came out, they tended to brush it off instead of actually addressing it.
→ The lack of confrontation with Xiao Fang. She was the heroine’s assistant but turned against her because she convinced herself that Mei Ren caused her to get fired (once again, lack of communication). It all ended up feeling like filler material to give Xiao Xue more room for her schemes, but I really wanted to see Xiao Fang’s reaction when she learned the truth.

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Overall, I really enjoyed watching this series. The character development across the board was excellent. It did a great job showing a difficult childhood and how it affected adult life. Another big plus was the main couple’s relationship — once they got together, there were no pointless arguments added just to create “drama” for the sake of the plot.

Of course, I also watched the original — the Chinese version — but I actually preferred the Korean adaptation, for several reasons:
- They got rid of the weird love triangle between the main heroine and the two brothers, which made it much more pleasant to watch. Because of that, the brothers also seemed more bonded — for example, they both knew about his return.
- The main heroine’s best friend didn’t fall for Kim San-ha, which in the Chinese version felt extremely forced. Plus, here she got a happy ending with Kang Hae-joon.
- They didn’t try to convince me that Kim San-ha cured depression and anxiety with herbal medicine — though that’s kind of a weak plus, because in this version his issues were almost completely brushed aside.
- Kim San-ha actually asked Yoon Joo-won about their relationship — something I really missed in the original.

However, I also found a few downsides compared to the Chinese version:
- Kim San-ha’s problems were completely ignored. He went through hell with his mother for ten years, yet he never once brought it up with Yoon Joo-won. She saw the scars on his arms, and later they even slept together — but she somehow didn’t notice his burn marks? I really missed seeing them talk about such a serious topic.
- Kang Hae-joon’s relationship with his biological father was underdeveloped. We know his father abandoned him again after his child was born, but this was barely addressed. The same goes for the accidental death of his mother — it was brought up and then completely dropped.

A minor issue, but I felt sad that Kim San-ha didn’t become a dentist, just because Yoon Joo-won was afraid of going to them :(

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A very pleasant series to watch. It tackles difficult topics like depression and PTSD, but in my opinion, they were handled well. It was wonderful to follow the main characters’ relationship from the very beginning. They met when both had hit rock bottom and gradually became each other’s biggest support during a crisis, despite their earlier “hatred” back in high school. The second couple also stole my heart, and I rooted for them hard. Plus, of course, my favorite — Nam Ba-da. Completely clueless for most of the series, but that’s exactly what won my heart, along with his arguments with his mom. Another big plus is that all the storylines were properly wrapped up. In the end, I wasn’t left with any unanswered questions or plot holes.

However, I did find a few issues that made me lower my rating. Only by one star, though, because I liked the series so much that these didn’t outweigh the positives.
→ The constant alcohol consumption by the main couple. I’m aware that mental health is still a big taboo topic in Korea, but I refuse to believe medicine is that backward. They were both on antidepressants, which absolutely should not be mixed with alcohol — especially that frequently. Not only could they seriously damage their health, but they could also disrupt and prolong the treatment process.
→ The character of Min Gyeong-min. Damn, I think the narrative potential here was huge, and I was disappointed that it was reduced to his death in an accident and later forgiving him. It would have been far more interesting if he had survived and been able to explain his motives in more depth — to show that he truly regretted everything he had done.
→ Infantile behavior. The main couple was theoretically adult (close to thirty?), but in reality their interactions were sometimes extremely sugary and childish. Watching that in real life would honestly make me cringe, but within the series I could at least laugh at it (partly out of second-hand embarrassment, but it still lightened the heavy topics).

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