caramel

Good watch for those who enjoy tragic love stories....

This drama is really good if you enjoy dramas with a beautiful emotional love story. It’s a story of 2 people who did not have a childhood filled with happiness. They found each other and fell in love however unfortunate events kept happening to them.

I watched the entire show in a day so it’s definitely possible to binge watch the show. #Woodohwan and #Leeyoumi had insane chemistry and their acting was so good! Haejo’s character was very free spirited and he liked doing things without any plans. Jaemi is very extroverted and has an outgoing personality. Both of them suit each other well cause they relate to similar pain.

Now the story is really very simple, there is no plot twist and nothing really shocking. It’s a very simple deep love story. So for this genre it’s good but personally not my style of show so there were parts where I just skipped…

I enjoyed the relationships shown in the drama especially Haejo and Bongsuk who was basically his guardian since he was young. She cared for him as a mother / sister and was always there for him.

Jaemi had a fiancé who she was going to marry and he was deeply in love with her. Initially I didn’t think he was going to have such a big role in the drama. But he is actually the second male lead. So there are many scenes regarding his family issues as well. He was an understanding SML though always thinking about her happiness so nothing toxic! (just that maybe there was too much screen time regarding his issues)

I’m sure everyone who will watch this knows the ending so…. 🙃 Everything is revealed in episode 1 itself so there isn’t any shocking reveals after that.

For those who really like the emotional tragedy kind of romance then this is for you! There is fluff definitely but it’s all under the shadow of tragedy so… 🥺

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With the passion and the will, you can strive to achieve a life for yourself

This drama is a continuation from #FlourishedPeony which aired early this year. Overall the drama felt very realistic with good pacing and no over the top plots. The progression of the story was done very well with the main focus being on the topic that it is possible for women to survive without relying on their husbands.

I'm glad the writers and the directors did not stray away from this idea and constantly reminded us that MuDan our FL is not someone who is weak but she is smart and independent and can protect herself. There weren't random damsel in distress moments but instead it was Mudan who always fought for herself.

Similarly our ML Jiang Chang Yang also never forced it on Mudan to take his assistance but instead walked along side her and her plans only helping out when required. I loved the respectful relationship they had! Altho the romance is slow burn but you can clearly see how they start out as partners and then become friends and then finally ppl who want to protect each other.
It was great to see the chemistry between #Yangzi and #Lixian again~~ there were so many cute scenes towards the end hehe

This time i was also amazed by #Mileswei because i was seeing him as a villain for the first time and his acting was really good to the point he annoyed me so much while watching.

Although there is politics involved but its not explored in great details so there is no extensive betrayal plots or wars. It's mostly about how women are seen very differently in the past and how some of them choose to live their lives.
Overall a very well paced drama with a really good closure for all actors. Our leads with them happy ending and also all her shop "employees" with their own stories. It's been long since i watched a drama without a rushed ending so this was good!

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IM GONNA BE VERY HONEST

General Setting: Happy Ending, low romance, high on politics

If you are looking for good execution, directing or romance then this is not for you. To be honest, the clips of the leads I saw on twitter made me excited to watch this. However, when I saw the actual scenes it was so disappointing. The first half of the drama is good although the pacing is messy and there are many mini plots which they try to end quickly. But still its interesting and you feel like watching more. Around eps 20 onwards it started going downhill with poor build-up and really bad introduction of plots. One main example is the story of song han. Just by watching the drama I could tell how much they had to cut out because really the progression was bad for his arc. One minute he is following songmo like a loyal brother 2 eps later suddenly he wants to kill songmo and has all the ambitions he never had. This is just one example.

The entire drama started with a time slip. This time slip was mentioned like maybe 2 times(?) in the entire drama. But i can understand cause the minute she stopped Songmo from his rebelling plans she couldn't really predict what happens anymore. BUT at least she should have like explained it to Songmo (she tried for like 5mins on their wedding night). So the entire "time travel" plot was dropped.

Romance....I didnt feel the chemistry at all....the chemistry the two had in ep 1 practically carried the whole show cause once they got married it felt like i was watching a 50year old married couple instead of a newly married couple. Honestly i blame this on the execution cause their kiss scenes were shot so bad all the random camera angles and cut scenes...their tension was much stronger when they weren't together lol .

I'm honestly not sure why people are rating this so high and claiming it to be the drama of the year...its really not..its a very normal drama i feel. First half good second half bad. The villains are mediocre only appear at the end, the battle was so underwhelming (they tried to make it emotional but...). Jiyong the character i thought will be her advisor and guardian for the time travel plot was a character with no role and just acted all mighty.

Overall, had expectations for the drama but was let down. Acting was subpar as well so probably will not rewatch this...

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watch for the laughs and fluff but not for the plot

The first few episodes of the drama is actually really funny. It made me anticipate the next few episodes! After watching multiple of the "go into script" dramas I felt quite familiar with what she was experiencing. The usual denial of the plot, the attempts to make changes and slowly figuring out the rules. It began well however midway I realised the progression stopped. Song yi meng (SYM) stopped making significant changes to the plot. She also didnt spend much effort to analyse the changes taking place. Honestly the first major change where instead of Nan Heng it was LSL who saved her from the fire, should have made her question the flow but this was looked over until much later on. Anyway after awhile until ep 30 it became quite draggy and I was just waiting for Nan Heng's redemption. This was another point for 30 eps SYM continued with her prejudice of Nan Heng even though he was outright helping her and literally crying multiple times in front of her. Until ep 29, where suddenly in 2 episodes everyone's opinion of Nan Heng just changed overnight...so....this part i felt like they could have built it up and developed it much better. Because Nan Heng faced injustice for sooo many episodes so the turn over wasn't very satisfying.

The ending definitely went in a way that I did not expect. Although the progression was messy but it was an interesting take. However all these dramas never give us enough of the modern world time as well. A 5 min cookie video after credits for the modern world is just :(((( I was very curious about Nan Feng's side of the story as well. Unfortunately it was not really explained.

The villains were just really stubborn and annoying. I have nothing more to say they are just annoying. Not really the smart kind of villain just jealous kind.

--- ACTING ---

Hats off to Liu YuNing, omg he really managed to shine in this drama. All his scenes and expressions were really so interesting to watch and his character had alot of story to allow him to portray different types of emotions and expressions. Honestly since I knew the ending is happy in the modern world the deaths didnt really feel very sad to me so instead i was admiring his acting for every death scene. It was really good and he makes it look so good on camera. I feel this drama really gave him the opportunity to showcase his skills.

I think Li YiTong was also okay but her character was not developed well so I feel she didnt get as much opportunities. It felt like a very one dimensional character. I feel like the makeup artist didnt give her justice with the overlining of the lips cause it was too obvious in all the episodes >< I enjoyed watching her comedic scenes though at the start it was really funny.

--- OVERALL ---
In terms of plot, I felt like it was a decent drama, but its definitely not for the plot. For the romance yes, there are many cute moments between the leads. Its a funny drama but it has its flaws so good to watch with not much thoughts. There are many things we start to question while watching but most of them are ignored "since its just a script". But definitely for LYN's acting its a really good watch I CRIED EVERYTIME HE CRIED.

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THE WRITER NEEDS AWARDS!!

This drama totally nails it, thanks to a amazing script and brilliant directing. It’s almost unreal that it’s the writer’s first script! The plot was set from the beginning, no weekly changes based on audience reactions, and you can tell—it’s packed with tiny details that make you go “wow.” The team deserves all the awards, and it’s a shame people are missing out just because it’s not a typical rom-com.

Park Shin Hye as Justitia was amazing! She’s fierce, stylish, and brings out this refreshing personality with incredible action scenes. Kim Jaeyoung also shines as Han Daon, finally getting a lead role that feels perfect for him. Their chemistry was really good. Initially you wonder how they will tease each other and then you just start waiting for their cute moments. The “enemies to lovers” trope hits hard—she even kills him in their third meeting!

SBS has to give them Daesangs!!

Story Breakdown (Some spoilers):
- Fantasy:7/10
- Crime:8/10
- Romance:5/10
- Subtle Romance:10/10

The romance is more about cute, awkward moments rather than intense scenes, which actually makes it more touching. They’re both total beginners at love, so hugs even catch them off guard. In the final episode, there’s a well-done time skip that makes their relationship growth feel natural instead of forced.

Justitia is focused on her dark mission, acting as a judge who secretly puts criminals on her own “death trial” to send them to hell. But here’s the twist—her decisions don’t always bring justice to the victims’ families, which adds a lot of depth to her character. By the end, she’s starting to question her ruthless approach.

Han Daon, meanwhile, is the detective working on Justitia’s cases, frustrated as she releases the very criminals he’s spent ages catching. He discovers the truth about her pretty early on, and just when it feels like he might expose her, he starts to adopt her harsh methods, while Justitia becomes more compassionate. Their role reversal is a brilliant twist.

Execution:
- Each episode kept fans guessing with theories, but the show constantly surprised us. The trailers even threw us off!
- There was one plot hole: what happened to Bitna’s soul? Since she was wrongly sent to hell, it would’ve been nice to see that resolved. But it’s left open for interpretation.

In conclusion, don’t skip this just because it’s not a rom-com! The story’s engaging, with great humor and fantastic chemistry between the leads. You’ll want to rewatch this one for sure!

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cried a river T.T

It’s a family drama but a really really “depressing” one. This drama focuses on the reality of surviving when you are not from a wealthy family and also highlights the different stages in the life. How the choices they make affect their lives is also clearly shown. How parents can sacrifice so much for their kids and how the kids learn to appreciate their parents.

I cried alot watching this show…somehow IU always picks really sad dramas but she is able to really portray her characters well. I was amazed because she had to cry almost every episode. As an actor I feel like that must have been so hard and tiring. IU has the main role in the drama, most of the scenes are of her.

Park bogum, unexpectedly doesn’t have much screen time but he did really well as well. He was loyal supportive and hard working. He was the perfect husband for Aesun so she never regretted marrying him.

The drama was directed very well with clips from the past and present blended nicely and presented in a clear timeline. It was not confusing to understand and the story was very heartwarming.

Overall a very good drama which shows the difficulties of the past and how a family managed to live on together.

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weak compared to expectations

There were many impactful scenes in season 1 which made the story very meaningful. A similar concept was adapted for season 2 as well with new characters but because the way it was played out was very monotonous, there was no depth to the plot. In season 2 the background stories of the characters were lacking alot so it felt like watching a group of kids with ego problems. Viewers are just supposed to assume the characters went through a rough childhood and hence they are in this state... but removing this portion removed the relatability of the characters.

In season 1 there was a huge form of satisfaction whenever Si-eun fought back...but this time it felt so hmm... like i totally understand using a weapon to protect yourself when you are suddenly attacked but for the last scene that one I feel was not valid cause their opponents were all bare as well and it was a discussed fight...so that portion of the drama felt like they forced their win.

For the positive points, the acting is good by all the members. The pacing is average mostly them fighting and recovering then fighting again. They get beat up so much but in 2 days their face goes back to normal...haha

I would definitely recommend season 1 to everyone but season 2 can just be passed. There isnt much link with the past season anyways.

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honestly better than I expected

i enjoyed the production and teamwork, it was like watching a high production escape room. This show will go in the category of Busted but more in the serious and thriller/mystery perspective. There isnt much comedy as the cast is focused on solving all the clues and its a time based mission.

This show is very different from Devil's Plan and The Genius as its a totally different concept. if you enjoy escape rooms this will be ur cup of tea but if you prefer strategical game shows this is not something like that.

The cast was really good and you could really see their teamwork. They always made sure everyone agreed on their decisions before attempting to do anything.

Its a very quick binge which I enjoyed~ (since i do like "thriller") But really kudos to the staff for creating all the set and making the effects so realistic on the screen!

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this was really a family drama..only

to be honest the drama is not bad. Just that its highly based on family and work issues. Huan Huan and her mother find it really hard to get along with each other but it makes sense cause its almost impossible to get along with the mother. The drama is highly focused on the mother but she doesnt really have any character development.

On the other hand however, Huan Huan's character is really good. She is confident and out spoken and is willing to fight for her loved ones. I did not feel frustrated watching her and her scenes was actually quite refreshing. The male lead also YZM is a very big green flag. Their romance is mature and very natural with no issues.

If you are looking for fluff then it will be better to watch the romance highlights on youtube. If you like the family genre then u might like this show but the scenes with the mother....u might feel like flipping the table.

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I thought this was gonna be part of my top dramas in 2024….

Summary: Happy ending, high on angst, cliche moments, not medically logical

My advice watch until ep 9 and just pretend the rest dont exist. For the first time I feel like I need to divide this review into 2 parts…

Review for first half:
I really clicked in without expecting much cause I just saw it one day on Netflix that a new drama has started. Initially I didn’t want to start it so early cause I prefer to binge watch it but that one clip from the first call made me give in.

I was actually so shocked by the plot and execution. Usually after a few episodes the intensity dies down and we start to predict what happens but wow for this one every call they made every dialogue they had was amazing. Eps 6 contained my most favorite calls. The execution was insane…

YYS and CSB initially I thought their chemistry will be a bit off but omg they are so good. Im so glad the role was given to them because I don’t think we would feel the same way if the acting was not executed to this level. However, I did feel CSB just looked much younger than him but I valued the chemistry and acting more so it was fine.

The second main leads were so cute as well. They tried to steer us away for one episode but the writers brought it back haha…

Review for second half:
Now with all this expectations set from the starting few episodes around ep 9 is where is started to go downhill…

The reveal of the “Teacher” aka mastermind behind all this was really very underwhelming…really barely any impact at all. I expected him to be a smart psychotic villain…in the end he was just fooled chasing after the wrong target all this while.

Now, the kidnapper always acted as if he was under the mastermind’s control. But suddenly once the mastermind was out of the story he became so ambitious and had so many plans to continue the revenge…

Ok all this I can close my eyes and just leave it to my imagination to develop but that ENDING literally what was that. It felt like all the effort put into the front few episodes were just wasted. I really hoped so much that it won’t be a lame ending where there is no justice served and they just kill off the villain…but that’s exactly what we got…another unsatisfactory ending for the villain…the last eps was just so bad it made no sense. Him disappearing okay I give it to him cause he needs to get a new identity. Why did he suddenly go rejoin the forces out of nowhere in a war zone state?? And why did the writers make HHJ go to that state alone in the middle of all the machine guns thinking she can just walk freely in the woods…like seriously I was just so disappointed!!

Basically towards the end that’s when it truly became a wattpad drama. Initially at the start it was still okay but the end really just purely for their romance with no sense in plot.

Really it was such a good opportunity for a clean closure but wasted….

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good plot twists but lame strategy..?

As usual like all other season 2 shows, this season focuses more on the backstories and the crossfire moments between the two parties. They were things the show did well and things that were not so good…

Firstly, there were some really good plot twists. Number 11, number 001 and the initial battle strategy (won’t go into details). The one point that made this s2 different from other shows and their s2, there was some unexpected moments, so it was not all so predictable. I liked the part where they showed the life of the guards as well. They were also just people desperate for money.

If you watch carefully, they dropped so many "hints" or sneak peaks but never covered it in this season...to be honest, having multiple seasons doesnt always mean a good thing. Dragging for so long can get repetitive. Like i felt there were so many filler scenes which they just had to add.

However, the games…were really quite boring. They spent a lot of time on the pre-game and post game situations which showing once is enough but they showed it so many times it got draggy. This time it isn’t has gruesome as last time its very mild actually.

I honestly, did not expect him to reveal his identity that fast which I thought was very lame cause I expected him to have a better plan since he’s been doing this for 2 years…

There wasn’t any memorable character this time it was very lead focused. They spend so long introducing so many new characters but gave then really little screentime in the actual situation.

The plot twists kinda saved the show. The ending was....not good as well. To leave an opening for S3 they of course couldn't just end everything so...

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hmm mixed feelings...

For me unfortunately, it did not live up to the expectations I had. I am originally not like a full on fan of hosplay as well but I did enjoy that drama cause the characters were fun and interesting. However in this drama which follows a similar concept, it was really hard to find likable characters.

At the end of the drama the characters I like the most were Nam Kyung and Jaeil. Wah sorry but the leads made like no impact to me. I could barely relate to them and Yi young's story was just boring. I heard there was alot of heat about the romance to be honest they could have just continued without the romance plot. Both "couples" even the one hinted in the last eps felt very forced...Felt yi young's character was very awkward...so yea other than the professors i only found 2 residents likable...

Not sure why but the stories this time were not very emotional, or maybe because there were just too many people it became hard to get attached to one storyline. There were quite alot of scenes showing the stressful lives of residents. Also because everything was centered to one department only, after awhile it became boring...

I feel like it really depends on people's taste, some prefer the slice of life kind of slow pace drama while some prefer more intense fast pace kind. I guess im just the latter. I watched almost all the episodes together so yea it definitely made me wanna watch in x2 speed cause it was so long and quite slow paced. Didnt find the funny scenes funny as well...

Its still a decent drama! just not my style...

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slow, sooo slow, extremely slow...

So many A-list actors but what a disappointing show. I honestly don't know what they were going for...horror? or emotional stories? Honestly, if written with a much better pacing it would have been so much better. I feel this really depends on your preference because the plot doesnt really have any issues it reasonable and commonly used in kdramas. However, the way it was portrayed was not giving the plot of the characters any justice. I had to watch it in x2 speed because it was so slow. Slow because every scene was dragged out for so long to display the "scary" / "mystery" vibes but only certain scenes were actually scary.

Everyone said its very confusing and its true. The first 4 episodes were very hard to understand and I feel because of that people just continued to watch to find out what it means. Not gonna lie that was me as well. I wanted to know so I continued but I really couldnt watch the drama with this pacing anymore so I decided to drop it cause after ep 4 nothing felt new anymore..

The thriller element was mostly gone once you know what actually happened and then it became more of emotional stories of each person. The CGI they used to show the area looked so fake that I could immediately tell this was some "made up" world. The entire drama is mostly filmed in a very dark lighting where only the hospital is the bright place. So yea a very clear indication on what that means.

The girl with the suitcase honestly was the most interesting character other than that it was quite boring....

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did not live up to expectations...

When I first watched episodes 1 to 4 I was shocked because based on the budget and story expectations I had, the plot was cliche and there was nothing engaging...given the deep plots introduced early in the drama I thought those will be the focus point for the drama. But eventually the plot just became messy because they added every single plot possible inside without giving proper closure to some open plots.

Plenty of loopholes, still dont understand how not a single family member went with her to germany for such an important surgery. The car crash and the kidnap and the getting s**t and stuff was so redundant to be honest. The villain's story just ended abruptly after dragging it for 16 episodes....the main plots were barely discussed, why did he want to divorce, why was she so cold to him.

Yes needless to say the acting and the osts are really good, but sometimes if the plot is so obviously not linking, it removes the relatability from the drama making it harder to understand the characters. For example, first half of the drama even though she had few months to live she focused so hard on getting into the trillion group (disregarding her health), the minute she just lost her company overnight suddenly all her desires disappeared??? literally the only person who was fighting back was the aunt. Even the family, how can a director and CEO of such a big company know nothing on how to handle the situation and they just dumped everything on hyunwoo to solve....

anyway i really tried to find why this was so hyped but really it is way too overrated and overhyped.

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smarts leads, easy plot, amazing chemistry

This was actually my first Liu Yuning drama and I was shocked cause I felt like he acted really well for his role. I was equally shocked by Song Zuer, they were really good. They get married almost immediately but although they are enemies they still look out for each other. So the first few episodes you really experience the haters to lovers kind of situation. Lady Qiao (manman) is a smart and independent female lead. She is definitely not the kind that gets bullied on enemy ground. She can defend and stand up for herself which I loved it made her character very interesting. Wei Shao is also equally smart and charismatic making them a really good pair. Even though he doesnt like his wife he will still respect and protect her at times. Thats how they eventually fall for each other. Towards the end where the romance is more developed it was shocking like their chemistry was amazing. So for the leads I really enjoyed watching them! They were cute and fun.

Now for the side characters...I am glad the side characters in this drama are a handful. They didnt keep introducing new people which makes the plot confusing but instead built a story around the existing people. They showed more scenes about their friendships and really fun moments. The comedy was really enjoyable with the witty and sudden jokes. The characters and their acting really made this drama stand out. The only characters i didnt really like were her cousin and bizhi...

Regarding the villain, we cant say there is only one villain it was more like just multiple greedy people who wanted to always attack them someway or the other. Sometimes the villains were females out to break up the marriage and in other cases there were wars. Although I did not really enjoy the final war scene. It was supposed to give a satisfying feeling but it felt really rushed (as usual in cdramas) and it felt a bit messy in comparison to the careful plans which was always mentioned in the drama. The time jumps in the last eps were like every min is a month or something. So yea...that part was really rushed.

Its a happy ending if anyone is wondering. The ending is cute.

For many weeks I could not find any cdrama interesting after flourished peony but when i started this it hooked me back in. There is a chance i might rewatch this in the future for the chemistry between the leads!

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