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This review may contain spoilers
Beauty Comes from Within, Makeup just Enhances It
Can we all just agree that the alpaca was the MVP of the show? Anyways, I wanted to see TJC in a better modern than LMLMV so this went on the watchlist about the same time. Plus it had a sci-fi element that most rom-coms don't have. I've seen LL in a drama before so as usual no expectations going in.
Pros: I think TJC handles comedy and romance quite well. His character TQ first came off seeming as a jerk but then we found out that he was just a confident nerd with little experience in romance or how to talk to women though he's great at protecting them. The premise of the filter was mysterious in its origins but the FL or SCC was chosen and first a blessing in disguise to her though a curse to TQ both comedically (through all of her personas that he met; two of which he fell in love with) and later psychologically, through it everyone was affected in some way. SCC learned how to love herself for who she was not just how she looked but only when the thing made her invisible.
The comedy and romance was on point as were all the personas and we had a lot of fun counting how many people, animals, or objects she became. The cinematography was really beautiful especially when TQ stopped seeing color except on her and the male persona she became. That seamless weaving in and out of color to B&W and back was very cool and I had never seen it done anywhere before. Also kudos to the actors who took the essential three people she became though there were several others.
The supporting cast were all good for the show and I didn't see a single person that I hated. 2nd couple (LY and GY) had chemistry and all kisses were real which we appreciated. Though I wish they explored the origin of the filter itself and the "granny" who gave it to her as she wasn't real either but just borrowing someone's face and body. I liked how TQ and GY knew something fishy was going on and started to investigate even the supernatural. OSTs were on point.
Cons: As the title of this review says, beauty comes from within and makeup just enhances it. Since that is the case and their workplace is a small company that releases beauty products, why again do they dress the FL like someone's grandmother all the time? I get that she doesn't see herself as beautiful or appreciates herself until she's put through this trial but that doesn't mean you can't at least have her dress her age. The SFL is reversed, she dresses more like a teenager than a woman with her own home and successful career. Even her agent looks more professional than her.
The drama dropped points for me when the FL brought constant psychological harm to the ML and saw nothing wrong with that, even laughed at it. Because they had a million misunderstandings and almost no real communication she somehow always felt like he was in the wrong until he explained something and she would see how her behavior and thought process was totally wrong. They crossed the line when they killed off the male persona and even her sister finally realized that these actions have consequences, not just for TQ but for SCC. I thought that a lot of times the FL was the bully in the situation as she would first boast, do her whole strength thing, screw up somehow and just keep compounding problems. Even if in her heart she had good intentions, the way she handled them would backfire. When TQ finally figured everything out and she apologized, many were expecting TQ to really punish her but because he had already fallen for her (since it was always her anyways in all of the personas, from the beginning), so after being a bit cold towards her, he let her off the hook. It was very anticlimactic to say the least. He suffered way more than she did.
Tossing in SFL's pregnancy in the end and making the wedding literally have half an episode left you feeling unfinished. They could have done without that arc and just had a proper proposal and wedding for the leads. Considering everything they'd been through--silly or not--it's the least they deserved.
Would I recommend it? Sure. It's a different type of show and the comedy is definitely good when it's there. I'm glad I got to see another side of TJC and GHY.
Pros: I think TJC handles comedy and romance quite well. His character TQ first came off seeming as a jerk but then we found out that he was just a confident nerd with little experience in romance or how to talk to women though he's great at protecting them. The premise of the filter was mysterious in its origins but the FL or SCC was chosen and first a blessing in disguise to her though a curse to TQ both comedically (through all of her personas that he met; two of which he fell in love with) and later psychologically, through it everyone was affected in some way. SCC learned how to love herself for who she was not just how she looked but only when the thing made her invisible.
The comedy and romance was on point as were all the personas and we had a lot of fun counting how many people, animals, or objects she became. The cinematography was really beautiful especially when TQ stopped seeing color except on her and the male persona she became. That seamless weaving in and out of color to B&W and back was very cool and I had never seen it done anywhere before. Also kudos to the actors who took the essential three people she became though there were several others.
The supporting cast were all good for the show and I didn't see a single person that I hated. 2nd couple (LY and GY) had chemistry and all kisses were real which we appreciated. Though I wish they explored the origin of the filter itself and the "granny" who gave it to her as she wasn't real either but just borrowing someone's face and body. I liked how TQ and GY knew something fishy was going on and started to investigate even the supernatural. OSTs were on point.
Cons: As the title of this review says, beauty comes from within and makeup just enhances it. Since that is the case and their workplace is a small company that releases beauty products, why again do they dress the FL like someone's grandmother all the time? I get that she doesn't see herself as beautiful or appreciates herself until she's put through this trial but that doesn't mean you can't at least have her dress her age. The SFL is reversed, she dresses more like a teenager than a woman with her own home and successful career. Even her agent looks more professional than her.
The drama dropped points for me when the FL brought constant psychological harm to the ML and saw nothing wrong with that, even laughed at it. Because they had a million misunderstandings and almost no real communication she somehow always felt like he was in the wrong until he explained something and she would see how her behavior and thought process was totally wrong. They crossed the line when they killed off the male persona and even her sister finally realized that these actions have consequences, not just for TQ but for SCC. I thought that a lot of times the FL was the bully in the situation as she would first boast, do her whole strength thing, screw up somehow and just keep compounding problems. Even if in her heart she had good intentions, the way she handled them would backfire. When TQ finally figured everything out and she apologized, many were expecting TQ to really punish her but because he had already fallen for her (since it was always her anyways in all of the personas, from the beginning), so after being a bit cold towards her, he let her off the hook. It was very anticlimactic to say the least. He suffered way more than she did.
Tossing in SFL's pregnancy in the end and making the wedding literally have half an episode left you feeling unfinished. They could have done without that arc and just had a proper proposal and wedding for the leads. Considering everything they'd been through--silly or not--it's the least they deserved.
Would I recommend it? Sure. It's a different type of show and the comedy is definitely good when it's there. I'm glad I got to see another side of TJC and GHY.
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