ColourMePurple

Enlightening and Enjoyable

Apart from a few episodes in between around the earthquake where the story feels a bit slow, the show as a whole was amazing and worth watching till the end.

Keeping this review simple, I'll list out some of the highlights of this show for me:
1. The firefighting was what attracted me to the show as there are not many shows that cover this line of work (The First Responders kdrama also do an excellent job). The show detailed all kinds of rescue work that firefighters are involved in and the kind of equipment and techniques used in their missions along with use of technology making it quite fascinating.
2. The romance plot is a bit of a slow burn but was also an interesting addition to the show. Highlighting the professional and personal lives of both the main leads and how they maintain a balance as well as how one impacts the other giving a well rounded idea of both characters.
3. The strict mother plot also gives another interesting perspective to Asian families and how even adults are forced to juggle between independence and not upsetting their parents with their personal decisions.
4. The portrayals by the actors were interesting and memorable. I also noticed that the female lead would change her mannerisms while at work, dealing with her mother and her boyfriend. While at work she was strong, reserved and unflinching. With her mother, she was quiet and timid. And later with her boyfriend, she was happy and almost child-like and carefree. I loved all these sides to her and the actress did a very realistic job with it. Similarly, the male lead was strict and stern at work, unwavering almost as the leader who is responsible for everyone's safety but with the female lead, he was protective, caring and playful in the latter half of the series. Even when they were trying to hide their affection for each other, they had moments where they let down their guards.
5. Each cast member also had some part to play in the story and made it quite a strong performance and an outstanding series. The sister, the firefighters and the medical staff added a bit of comedy and fun so it was not as serious as one might believe.

I don't have too many complaints.
1. Somewhere in between the show was a little slow so I wish that was cut shorter and other scenes that were cut out were added back instead.
2. No wedding scene. Though it's not a big issue but I would have liked to see that.
3. The second male lead (portrayed by Vin Zhang) had a very short role.
4. I wish we could have seen Da Peng and Dr. Li Nan's story move forward. That was disappointing.

The series also has lovely, soothing OST. I hope more viewers give this series a try. It's certainly worth your time.

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Charming, great acting, an exciting journey!

Despite having watched the kdrama and knowing the entire plot, this was quite entertaining and fun to watch. That should speak for itself. The story moves pretty quickly right from episode 1 and also builds each character up quite well.

Every actor performed well and personally I found the Japanese version quite charming. The female lead was quite impressive with the two different personalities she portrayed. The female in the negative role also performs exceptionally well. There are moments where you can feel her pain as well and what led to her being the way she is. This is important since not many villains get a backstory but it adds so many layers to a character and why they act the way they do.

So even if you have watched the Korean version, it's well worth your time to give this a shot as well. Plus it is always fun to see a woman stand up for herself and her happiness.

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Crying Fest

From episodes 3 through 6, I have just been crying so much. So if you have lost someone close to you or know what that's like, this might hit you hard as well.
I had been waiting for this for a while now and it certainly didn't disappoint. I didn't really read much about it and just let it take me on a ride with it's storytelling. If possible, try to do the same. For that reason I will avoid getting into any details.
The leads had great chemistry. I genuinely loved the female lead. The show sets a great contrast and the female lead portrays it so well especially her past and present.
There was something I was curious about and I think they left us hints and that makes me a bit sadder.
Overall, I really loved how they not only depict the main leads but also the supporting characters and insight into their experience. It's not an easy watch if you are an emotional person but it's certainly worth it.
The OST is quite beautiful too.

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Cute and Hilarious

I never expected to laugh so much. Head Over Heels was truly a joy to watch! I was entertained from start to ep 11. Ep 12 was all right so I took off half a point. But the last scene (extra credit) was also fun.

I also had serious second lead syndrome. He was truly such a caring friend. The trio were a blast together! And one of the funniest episode of the drama was the two boys together.

Normally I wouldn't rate a school romance so highly. The characters really were wonderful. I was a bit mislead into thinking the plot will go down the horror route or suddenly become sad but fortunately, it kept it's light nature.

The OST is nice too. Need to look up the song. And the opening theme is quite beautiful.

I definitely recommend this one especially if you need to uplift your mood!

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Brilliant cast and edge of your seat suspense

The emotional rollercoaster this show has taken me on has been spectacular! Though the second part was a tad slow at first, the writers managed to keep us in suspense until the very last 2 episodes on how everything will come together. So for those watching and worrying, just sit back and let go of your anxiety and have fun with every moment.

Go Youn Jung had very big shoes to fill after Jung So Min charmed us with her sass and wit in season 1. But this season is not about the actress replacing the other. It is about growth and change. What you will get it hints of the same character yet different. And the main moments are the chemistry between the male and female lead. We also see hints of the special connection she has with the other male characters.

Crown Prince Go Won has been a lovely character once again. And Jin Mu has been the bad guy this show needed.

The only flaws with the show are the slow momentum, much less action and CGI. However, the ending will still leave you satisfied.

The OST of this show is one of the best! I can listen to it on repeat endlessly.

This show is worth rewatching and probably one of the few shows that I actually went back and saw multiple times in the process of waiting. Will definitely recommend it and whoever I did recommend the series to, have thoroughly enjoyed it. Hope you do too!

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Lives up to it's name

The show gives you exactly what it is titled - a feud and it comes with several twists and turns! I enjoyed the pacing of most episodes and the story was captivating. I watched for Bai Lu and what a great job she did in this! In fact, Feud is fu.l of very strong female charactefs which is wonderful to see.

Although there are few points which I felt were plot holes, it was quite entertaining to watch. I loved the fights and special effects. The side characters have also portrayed their characters exceptionally.

The theme song is quite peaceful. The sets and costume designs are excellent.

Feud is fun and binge-worthy!

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Great start, dropped the ball midway

When The First Night With The Duke started, it was one of my favourite dramas airing. Then somewhere in between it started to get boring.

I think when the drama became serious and cliched is when it lost my interest. The very typical crazy king, another faction trying to manipulate and capture the throne, helpless female lead, etc. The last one is what put me off the most since everything revolves around her. Capturing her was the worst plot move. I wanted her to keep driving the plot forward and not just from the background.

Other factors were: The FL in the modern world didn't look happy at all. The baby propaganda was over the top. Having 12 kids when healthcare for women was the worst sounds more like a nightmare than a dream.

The breaking the 4th wall ending was a bit too cheesy for me. Maybe if the lines were better I would have liked it.

But for the great first half and lovely opening, good negative female cast members, I'm giving this a 7.5.

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Good twists

The show started off a bit slow in the beginning but my interest grew from episode 3 onwards. I was curious to see where they would take the story and how the ML would try to help the FL. The use of statistics to try and evaluate the incidences of people getting injured around her was a good plotline.

I didn't realise that the series was only 10 episodes long so by 10th episode I thought we needed a bit more and was a bit surprised that it was over. I didn't see a certain twist coming and that was quite interesting. The story of the second male and female lead was a bit rushed. Perhaps these would be the only drawbacks.

The actors did quite a good job and the OST is lovely as well. Overall I enjoyed it.

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Messy plot twist and lots of plot holes

The first episode frankly was boring until the time travel element started. But it was getting better until the "plot twist" that ruined the entire show. Even the comedy was good at the beginning and then the series became serious and senseless.

The grandfather made no sense to me. Why was he cruel to the ML's mother? Then why was he cruel to the ML's step mother and her son? Why did he think the ML was deserving but not his step brother? Why was he obsessed with the painting? Why was he kind to the FL and then later wanted nothing to do with her? Why did he need the ML to be married? The step mother being the villain made more of a sense than the grandfather. It felt like poor writing to force a last minute twist on the audience without explaining why.

The FL time travelled and thought ML was her husband. Then she got confirmation later that he was the reincarnation of her deceased husband. Later she time travels back to the past again and stays away from the past version of her husband because she is in love with his future reincarnation but acts like they are two different people. They could have let the past version die sooner instead of this confusing behaviour from the FL. The past ML died thinking his wife was in love with another man. The other man being him in the future. Bizarre!

The lady who controlled the time travel disappeared from the story after the FL travel in the past. There was no explanation why she vanished. Why did the servant girl/sister not travel back along with the FL? Why did everyone retain memory of the FL after she returned to the past? Meanwhile in the past, FL's mother forgot about the servant girl's existence. The same amount of time that FL lived in the past, passed by in the future. FL falls in the water and reappears in the future out of thin air completely dry. The man who killed her in the past - no elaboration on whether he got punished. FL's parents would have still been heartbroken that their daughter was killed or committed suicide the second time. The rules of the time travel were truly vague.

The actions of the past characters made more sense than that of the future. For example, the man working with the step mother had grievance with the grandfather but was trying to kill the FL and then the ML instead of the man who was actually the problem - the grandfather.

ML was destined to die if the FL stayed in the future. When she leaves, he is magically cured. But when she returns, his illness doesn't return. No explanation on what the rules were for this to happen.

I found these things made the plot really weak and ruined the essence of the show that seemed to be decent initially.

The positives where the leads chemistry, some of the earlier comedy when FL is adjusting to the future, the OST and theme are stunning, the designs are pretty, the FL's savvy servant girl, and the ML's assistant's smart sister who I wish had more of a role. Even the step brother was an interesting and neglected character.

I wish I could rate this higher but too much of the series made no sense towards the end. If you don't mind illogical storylines, you might be able to enjoy this. But this is one of the weakest shows if you are a time travel plot lover. I would suggest to skip this one.

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Couldn't Connect

I was extremely excited for this season after enjoying the first season but somewhere in the middle I lost interest in the plot.

The story seemed to be all over the place. They killed off a character which I didn't quite understand the rationale behind. The show was still all right till that point albeit a bit slow for my liking. Story in between is forgettable. Then one by one new characters came out of the blue. One to serve as replacement to complete the trio but it just wasn't the same. I must have fallen asleep at some point because I don't understand why a certain character came into the picture. Convenient placement?

I liked that they added the autopsy scenes but it wasn't as impressive compared to the firefighting of the earlier season. They didn't really highlight a lot of medical and technical advancements.

The shows certainly goes for the shock value towards the end with the final criminal. Some incorrect medical statements were also made. I'm not sure how the system works in South Korea but since they are working with bombs, shouldn't a different department have jurisdiction? In that case, it would have been earlier to find the seller using legal means. I might also be mistaken but it takes less work to access the dark net which is why so many criminals can frequent it in the first place and nothing can be done about it.

Part of my interest dwindled when I had figured out the mystery of the final story so I couldn't enjoy it as much. It wrapped up quick which was good. I rolled my eyes at the US officials being certain of the result of a trial that hasn't even taken place. It's not like perpetrators ever get away through a mistrial or lack of evidence, right?

I wish I could score this higher but at the same time don't want to rate it too low since the actors did portray their characters well. They did try with the story. It just didn't strike a chord with me the way I wished it had and I don't have the patience to rewatch for now.

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Complicated with good moments and plotholes

I wish I could say I was enthralled with this series like so many others but something kept me from falling in love with it. One of the main reasons was not being able to understand every single business/political element to the story and there is plenty of it which is what adds to the thrill. So if you cannot completely comprehend some of those "wins", it gives a very dull effect. Something the writers should have considered and tried to explain or simplify. You can still enjoy the show. Just not to the full effect.

Best moments:
1. There are many shocking moments and revelations that you can't anticipate and were enjoyable.
2. The fantasy element that adds a twist and is a major part of the story.
3. The relationship between Do Jun and his grandfather were truly some of the best moments.
4. The way Do Jun makes his way through the hurdles armed with the knowledge of his past life.
5. Seeing the Jin family fail and fight amongst themselves was amusing.

Not so great moments:
1. No one noticing that Yoon Hyun Woo and Jin Do Jun look EXACTLY alike.
2. Not being able to understand some of the "lingo" fully.
3. Do Jin ignoring his family after his real mother's death even when he could have.
4. The romance is practically non-existent and although I would not care otherwise, it feels like they built up a story for no reason.
5. The conclusion. Part of it does not make sense. You are rooting for a character and in the end, everything feels a bit bland and unsatisfactory.

Up until the 14th episode my rating was 8.5 for this show. I'm changing that now to a 7.5 based on the last episode. I am not likely to rewatch this show but it's a decent show. There are plenty of good reasons to watch it.

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Problematic with some nice moments

The 2nd season was definitely a bit of a let down. I found myself checking repeatedly to see how much more is left midway. I'm going to share spoilers to explain why I had issues with this half of the show.

First, the positives in the show. The husband is shown growing in responsibility but continues to be loving and kind. The sweet couple moments are enjoyable. The way they overcome different obstacles is fun (mostly).

The disappointments:
I genuinely enjoyed seeing the duality of the husband in the first season, but because the wife was angry with him for it, he abandons that identity completely. The male lead looked so impressive in the white wig! It was part of his charm. I never understood why she could not accept this side to him when she herself was hiding that she was not the person he thought she was. He completely accepted her. Why couldn't she? At least if that was explained maybe I could accept it.

Sexual assault trigger warning! The couple get a potential concubine by allowing to her to get molested by a creep. I thought they would formally introduce her so he decides to wed her. That would have been better. Apparently the manga explains this far better but I have to go by what was depicted in the series. Later, another prince gives away his wife without her consent to the same molester in exchange for power. These are very off-putting plot points.

Apart from these, the story was alright. It picks up towards the end.

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Cute and funny

If you're looking for a feel good romcom then A Business Proposal is perfect for you.

It's a simple story of mistaken identity that leads to love. The writers know the situation is a cliche rich guy poor girl story and they enjoy making fun of it by depicting the various characters watching a drama with similar situations being portrayed as to what's taking place with the leads. There are many funny moments which makes the drama enjoyable to watch.

And for those who dislike the main leads, the second leads should win the show some brownie points. Both make a good looking pair and it is interesting watching them and how they overcome misunderstandings and their hesitancy. The grandfather is another loveable character and he plays a strict but loving father figure for the Male lead who is way too busy working his life away. I also loved the sister rivalry to sisterhood moment between Jin Young Seo, the second female lead, and her cousin, Jo Yoo Jung.

My reason for not rating this drama higher is only because of a few flaws/depictions I disliked. Shin Hari (female lead) works with her team manager, Yeo Eui Ju, and a development team member, Kye Bin, who eventually start dating. The show depicts them as eccentric older characters to make fun of. Their love and bickering is shown as funny and somewhat distasteful. Also, the toilet scene jokes were a bit boring and overdone. And of course the show hits nearly every major romance cliche so there is no real surprise element to the show (until ep 10).

Despite these negatives, I enjoyed it a lot and most people would probably enjoy it too.

Edit: I have actually given ABP a 0.5 higher rating than my original review because I actually believe this is one of the most enjoyable romcoms I've come across and I have seen less enjoyable shows with the same rating ao it's only fair that it's entertainment value be considered.

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Dramatic at times but meh

I went into watching Little Women blind with only the idea that it's based on a book that I hadn't read but had heard was quite good. I don't find this Korean adaptation to be special. It left me questioning many things that didn't quite make sense.

Yes, Little Women has wonderful cinematography and the director knows how to build suspense and anxiety but at times I felt like the motivation behind everything lacked any kind of logic and the end folded so neatly, it was actually both a relief and disappointing.

I wish I could make sense of why the society functioned the way it did. Felt meaningless and unbelievable that no one questioned a thing.

Although the Oh sisters irked me in many instances, I was genuinely rooting for In Joo and In Kyung. Oh In Hye will go down as 2022's most annoying main character. So selfish and ungrateful! I prefer any of the villains over her because at least you understand them to a degree.

Loved the mysterious Choi Do Il and it was fun reading viewers speculate. It's unfortunate that the other male character is nothing to write home about.

If you enjoy suspense, then you might enjoy the rollercoaster ride this show takes you on. However, the ending is not very dramatic. If romance draws you in then you might want to give this one a skip.

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The Absurdity Will Make You Laugh

The show is not great to be honest and the acting lackluster but this drama made me laugh a lot simply because of how ridiculous situations get. I have given it a 7 just because I was entertained. Just not in the way it was intended. If you need to uplift your mood, watch this for the heck of it.

The writer decided to throw every possible trope into this. Abusive husband, dead child, twin sister, step-mother step-son relationship, concubine, a ML that just won't die, childhood friend, buried alive, drowning, forced kisses, revenge, phobia, kidnapping, blindness, amnesia, attempted rape, death of a parent, death of a sibling, etc etc.

The supporting cast even asks the male lead why he won't do a common sense thing and then exclaims, " The scriptwriter won't allow it". 😆 I wish the whole drama actually did some tongue-in-cheek breaking the fourth wall type of stuff so that it was more obvious that they are going to extremes on purpose. It would have become more enjoyable.

For the most part I enjoyed it but I was just a bit annoyed towards the end. I had had enough with these pop-up villains. I actually raised the rating from 6.5 to 7 because the FL gives her evil husband a good beating and her revenge idea was actually interesting. If only there was more of that version of the FL till the end.

In any case, it was a quick watch. I wouldn't recommend it as such but if you do watch it, try to enjoy the silliness of it all rather than taking it too seriously.

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