yes, this drama is filled with cliche's but what it excels at is how the characters react to those cliches! Most of the time, they do the opposite of what a more makjang drama would do (like what we see happening in the mock drama playing on tv in the background) and that's what makes this rom-com so refreshing- not because its trying something new and fresh but because it circumvents a lot of the fallout of traditional tropes. Great watch, I really enjoyed it.
the only Thai dramas I've seen are, pretty predictably, Kiss Me and Full House since I knew both stories from KDramas. also i've been kind of burnt out on K and TW dramas lately, so this list is perfect for me as I've been wanting to explore other international dramas but its always hard to know where to start. love the concept of having popular tropes tagged on this rec list, it really really is such a great way to gain attention for particular shows- awesome list is awesome <3
ooh, i agree with all of these! i'd also add to the sls trope that i despise when the second male lead is pushed together with the second female lead for absolutley no reason, other than trying to appease all of us who fall so hard for sls. its just absolutely ridiculous that almost every love square resolves itself into two "happy" couples
i also hate the existence of love squares, especially since while the second male lead is usually given a somewhat fighting chance (ie, we become sympathetic and may even root for him) the second female lead is almost always scripted as "a bitch" who is cold and unfeeling yet strangley obsessed with the male lead purely to cause an episode's worth of angst between the main couple. i wish second female leads were allowed the same depth a lot of second male leads get.
This was fun! I also have learned that whenever you're frustrated with the person in the passenger seat, you can pull over literally anywhere, even in the middle of heavy traffic (take up the whole right lane if you really want, its not a problem!) to argue with them
Wow, I've seen all of these except for Jewel in the Palace (historical dramas just aren't my thing) but BoF was, no surprise, the first! Also I cannot believe it has been seven years since You Who Came from the Stars aired! I always think of it as airing around the same time as DotS for some reason!
Something that I have noticed ever since the Hallyu wave was well established and KDrama became kind of mainstream (circa 2016 or so) is that newer dramas have lost that aspect of reality that grounded even the most unrealistic of plots. Dramas I watch now are so glossy and picture perfect that absolutely no character- specifically and most often the female lead- possesses any relatable traits. Rather then sympathizing with and rooting for the main characters, I just wind up annoyed with them for not appreciating how great their lives are. Its almost like dramas now have taken that aspect so akin to Hallmark movies wherein the story and the world is so cotton candy sweet that your stomach hurts if you eat too much. That kind of set up still works for Hallmark because those movies are only 90 minutes long, but the standard minimum of 16 hours worth of intense cookie cutter perfection has killed many a KDrama for me, specifically recent ones (Touch Your Heart comes to mind)
I was really hoping that at the end she would look once again at a picture of her past self (and show her face to the audience) and realize she wasn't some terrifying, ugly creature, but just a normal girl who was targeted by cruel children.
This is probably the healthiest drama I've ever watched (the main guy was in therapy and actually got real, licensed help for his mommy issues...literally when has a drama been so bold???) but maybe because of that I only liked it a healthy amount ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Oh my god I love the male lead hairstyles of the early 2000's, its so skater boy.
Other great classic dramas from the era: A Love to Kill (you know going into it that there is going to be so much pain and melodrama yet its still a great watch) and My Lovely Sam Soon (it was considered pretty radical for having an "overweight" female lead but if anything that atmosphere of absolutely perfect body types has only gotten worse in dramaland and I can't imagine any show doing such a thing today)
I really enjoyed the first half of this drama but I'm having a hard time continuing past the midway point- I'm just getting so many "W: Two Worlds" vibes wherein the plot was really tight and well done at first but after a while it started to unravel and get kind of repetitive and boring...hopefully I'm wrong and it stays strong, but I'm not sure what else they can do with this "let's avert that dream death" that's been every episode up to episode 8 (or 16, if you're going by the 30 minute eps)
This is so complex and impressive! Definitely some interesting food for thought. *side note* but I think the age gap in Romance is a Bonus Book is about 6 years as LJS's character mentions he's 32 and LNY's character is supposed to be 38 (i think that's what the show said).
Ooh, wrist-grabbing! That used to appear in every, single drama and everyone would be super uncomfortable because the ML should not be that physically aggressive, even if its at the beginning of their relationship when the 'hate' each other...that is one cliche I am super super happy to no longer see on screen
Oh man, the six episode kiss thing is so accurate, I was always counting down to those. If it was a longer drama, like 32 episodes or something, you usually had to wait longer though and that was soooo torturous!
I just really appreciate how well written every character in this drama is, not only do our leads have depth, but so does just about every side character. I love that there's no real villain because this drama acknowledges that people aren't naturally prone to intentional villainy. And the representation of characters that are so often marginalized in society: the mentally and physically disabled, the madam of a hostess bar, an elderly and (seemingly) destitute old woman...all these people make up Moon Hee and Gang Doo's found family and they are characters unto themselves. Its beautiful.
managed to finish it. overall, the drama was a little bland and some cliche plots. the drama was ok.
I have literally been stuck on episode 11 for weeks, can't seem to find any motivation to watch further even though i love both leads and was enjoying the drama
I've been really underwhelmed with tvn dramas lately. They used to be my favorite channel because their 16 episode romance dramas had a more realistic, less cringy cute feel than most of the dramas on the big three networks (not to mention they usually let their leads actually kiss), but now it seems like they've started churning out your standard G-rated dramas that you see on every other network. Don't get me wrong, I have been enjoying this drama a lot, but at a certain point it'd be nice for these 30 somethings to act like adults instead of chaste tennagers.
If they even improved just little instances between the leads, that would make such a difference: like when he awkwardly patted her on the shoulder when she was crying-- how hard is it for the director to have them sit next to each other and LDW put his arms around her, that would feel like a much more realistic reaction from a boyfriend to his girlfriend when trying to comfort her.
I really love how this drama has intentionally done a 180 from traditional drama villains. Hae Rin is sad when she's rejected by Eun Ho, but she never takes that anger out on him or Dani. Likewise with Seo Jun-- everyone is very adult about rejection in this drama, its incredibly refreshing. Additionally, Kim Yoo Mi has come across as harsh, but as the president of the company pointed out, her professionalism is necessary and needed in the middle of the office- that she got Dani a position at another company (even a kind of crappy company) made me so happy. Finally, the whole side plot with Park Hoon, Song Yi and Song Yi's mom is hilarious. It makes fun of the chaebol and their evil controlling parents tropes so hard, because even though her mom is trying to interfere, she's not actually a very competent villain.
i knew i would love yoo in na and lee dong wook as the leads, but i'm also super invested in our side-side couple: i just really want to see Dan Moon Hee finally have a guy who genuinely likes and appreciates her and after episode 9 i really want that guy to be our divorce lawyer/mamma's boy choi yoon hyuk!
i also hate the existence of love squares, especially since while the second male lead is usually given a somewhat fighting chance (ie, we become sympathetic and may even root for him) the second female lead is almost always scripted as "a bitch" who is cold and unfeeling yet strangley obsessed with the male lead purely to cause an episode's worth of angst between the main couple. i wish second female leads were allowed the same depth a lot of second male leads get.
Other great classic dramas from the era: A Love to Kill (you know going into it that there is going to be so much pain and melodrama yet its still a great watch) and My Lovely Sam Soon (it was considered pretty radical for having an "overweight" female lead but if anything that atmosphere of absolutely perfect body types has only gotten worse in dramaland and I can't imagine any show doing such a thing today)
If they even improved just little instances between the leads, that would make such a difference: like when he awkwardly patted her on the shoulder when she was crying-- how hard is it for the director to have them sit next to each other and LDW put his arms around her, that would feel like a much more realistic reaction from a boyfriend to his girlfriend when trying to comfort her.