Tallina

LMAOOO glad to know that I'm not the only one that felt the 2020 kdrama burn. Lol dramas started well and then suddenly the writers went haywire. Lol

Not sure if I'm the only one, but this is one of the few dramas where I really wanted a happy ending for the more "evil" characters. The Crown Princess and Mu Yeon's love story was just tragic and had me hoping they could make it out alive with each other in the end, but of course, they did not. I would say both characters were written and portrayed by the actor/actresses very well with the limited screentime they had. But I guess at least the child lived on!

Just stopping by to say that 5 years later, I'm debating on rewatching it since I remember it as being an incredibly well executed and casted drama that I feel like no other saeguk that came after was as engaging and thrilling to watch.

Just did, my bad. Didn't really think of it as a spoiler, haha but the last line was.

Lol why do I feel like they cut it out probably because HJP probably struck a deal with Alex and they didn't want him to shine anymore. I was thinking maybe he bought the app's rights from them (2STO) since they were probably gonna trash the app anyways. But yeah, it would've been nice to see what went down in there since the app is still operational after 3 years.

This is a drama where if you binge it and don't take the time in between to analyze and actually understand the characters, it's a pretty fun and entertaining watch. Not gonna lie. However, there's a huge difference between binging a show and watching it week by week. I've dropped quite a few shows that I had to wait week after week because characters, story, or acting just wasn't compelling enough. And though I may get hate for this, but had KSH aka HJP not been in this show, I would've dropped it probably half way through. But everyone has their own opinions and thoughts, so instead of getting dissuaded by low reviews or unintelligible comments, just watch the first few episodes to see if its for you. Cheers and happy holidays everyone!

Her and Yong San. He was the only one that understood his own mistakes and owned up to them and apologize to the people he wronged. Loved the growth they showed!

Honestly want a spin off with HJP, Seo In Jae, Yong San, and add Yeo Jin Goo and a love interest for HJP. Also, Dong Cheon lol his scenes with HJP are always hilarious or heart warming. We can start it all over again, HJP's childhood and then go into how he became successful on his own in Seoul (yes to more Nam Da Reum!!). We can summarize the time that was showcased in this portion of Start Up and then venture into his work with YJG's orphanage mentorship program (and introduce to us some new child actors or whatnot) and how he helps them transition to the adult world. He'll have to mentor a hot headed child and we can see all the issues that arise. Then, the background plot lines can go into his friendships and relationships with those around him at Sandbox or otherwise. It can just be a 3 episode special.. No? Well, one can dream. Lol

omg, did they really?! I even screenshot-ed one of your comments to send to a friend cause I thought it was hilarious hahaha well last episode soon! can't wait to see how it ends and whether the rating will continue to fall.

Totally agree with you that that's probably why NDS and SDM will be together. And I know you mentioned HJP's background, so you know he also isn't from a wealthy family and shouldn't be faulted that he worked his way up to have his life the way it is while the SamSan Tech boys couldn't/didn't/ haven't. I agree that he was too hesitant and let's face it. "Fate" wasn't going to let him have it either. The times he did want to try, things got in the way. It's like the saying goes, if you don't ask, the answer will always be no. In this case though, he did share his feelings, he just never pursued them for fear of being rejected and making her uncomfortable. But hey! 1 episode left and I hope they make it a good one.

Lol I feel like most are on the same page. Watch for HJP's ending and scenes. Sorry Dodal fans.

Exactly. It was just so unnecessary. And sorry, but frankly it was kind of pathetic. It was 3 years without Do San and they didn't figure ANYTHING out. Their relationship, the letters, nothing. Lol you would think regular people would talk, but I guess dramaland time skips is literally just a time machine with very little happening in between lol

Honestly, had the writers stopped the triangle earlier and instead went into more of their company dynamics and interworkings, people might've been less frustrated. I'm only speaking for myself, but I've known from the start that HJP has very little chance of getting the girl once the main lead was introduced. Its all just a K drama algorithm, y'know. So I wasn't expecting any different here. But as a fan of HJP, its exasperating to see him down and out because of it. We just want his happy ending. And they could've spent just a bit more time on In Jae, love thats she's gotten more air time these past episodes though - even if it had to be with Dal Mi every time. Also, they should killed the triangle early and spent more time developing the Dodal relationship cause tbh, as much as they're pushing that relationship on us, I still don't feel any chemistry between them. And this isn't because I believe she should choose HJP cause at this point, I'd find it strange if she suddenly hops on the Jidal train. Lol at least tomorrow is the last episode, hopefully they can wrap everything up nicely.

Just finished and honestly, I really loved the undying loyalty Yu Ri had for Lee Rang. And it was clearly reciprocated. The two had a very deep bond and treasured each other when they had no one else. Loved the familial moments between the family of 4, now family of 3. And very glad that he was able to be reincarnated into a warmer family now after how his mother abandoned him back then. He did commit evil deeds, so his sacrifice for his brother was his justice. The rest was pretty predictable so no comment.

This is definitely a wait for all the episodes and binge type of show. If I had started it earlier and had to wait each week for the next episode, I probably would've lost interest and dropped it. But since this is the last week, I started it and it's a fun watch when you can fast forward since most episodes are out. Not that it isn't a good watch, but I've found that I've been fast forwarding quite a bit this year, maybe I'm having k-drama fatigue or maybe some of these writers are having 2020 fatigue cause all these dramas start off great and then suddenly either the characters act of character or seem to have lost all thought process... who knows what's going on. But it's sad since I feel like quite a fewo shows had an amazing cast and/or plot but the writing/ directing really failed. Sorry not sorry to Start Up, RoY, Private Lives, DDSSLLS, and maybe this depending on how it ends, I guess.

Lol, he legit called her after and said it wouldn't be too late to chase after him to clarify. Do San also called her and she chose not to pick up. So, you're right, they're picking at crumbs.

What started as a drama with lots of potential started going through the same kdrama tropes and headed downhill. As much as I want to like the drama, there are just too many things unaddressed or swept under the rug to instead highlight our destined end game couple. Their meetings were also blatantly contrived through "coincidences" or "destiny" to have them back in each other's lives again. If there's no other way to have them meet without making it feel so forced, maybe they shouldn't be endgame, Ms. Screenwriter. Also, why does it have the be SDM's failure that brings them back together.. lol she has been working well on her career for 3 years but then all of a sudden she has to fck up when NDS is in town? She also puts herself down quite a bit which makes no sense to me. It's not as though when she met NDS, he was a hotshot. He was the head of a failing start up with no business plan and went through every thing she did to be where he is.. they're at the same level so why believe you are bogging him down? If you feel less than anyone, it should be HJP, but he wouldn't ever make you feel that way. There's too many moments where it feels like the characters act out of character, which takes away some of the joy of watching the show. At this point, NDS and SDM's romance is the least of my interests. I just want HJP to have his happy ending and In Jae to shove it to her ex-step-family's face by succeeding and becoming bigger than them. Only 1 week left!

Wait random encounters between HJP and SDM? Not SDM and NDS? cause I thought most of the scenes with HJP and SDM were pretty natural. They work in the same building and he comes over to hang out with grandma. Seems pretty normal to me LOL I found the NDS and SDM unnatural lol too many coincidences/fate moments

I agree, if this was meant to be female centric, it certainly fell flat. I was more annoyed than I thought I would be that they had to use a 'failure' in Dal Mi's pretty smooth sailing professional career to get Do San back in her life. A lot of the things things that happened in ep 13 & 14 were too contrived and forced, I felt. Too many "coincidences" disguised as fate/destiny whatever you want to call it to get Do San back in Dal Mi's life. And yes, the triangle became the focus point and ilthe show lost its charming background story about start ups and corporate struggle. I love In Jae and wished she had more screentime. And same, just want to see the end, though I'm sure I already know 75% of it with how predictable its been.

Is it bad that I thought the best part of this entire series was the sizzling chemistry between Sophia and Edward? lol honestly wished that they had more scenes together or actually I would've preferred them to be the main story. If I'm not wrong, Edward was trying to seek revenge for his parents but his affection for Sophia was almost enough to make him forget about it that's why he left her and returned to GK. Even then, as he was plotting out his evil deeds, he wanted to make sure she was safe. Honestly, they're a badaaaaass couple and would've made for a more thrilling story then the more puppy like love between the actual main couple. Just my thoughts, don't hate. Overall, the story was convoluted, directing was pretty terrible since the story telling was kind of all over the place. Cast was a visual wonderland. I fast forwarded a lot of the scenes and still got the gist of the story and who was on whose side, but some of it I probably lost, not that I really care to rewatch since it was pretty slow at times and just not engaging. I'd only say watch if you have nothing else to watch.