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Friendship and Brotherhood at its best
It’s too bad there hasn’t been reviews on this wonderful work. The lack of reviews then obviously drives down ratings and interest. Too bad!The story itself is truly an overused narrative. A couple divorces, unexpectedly I might add, and there is your baseline. Corporate business is the setting, more or less, as the motivated drives to succeed and the opposition has its differing ambitions. Couple ended up working in same company so from there, it’s your guess where it leads as I don’t want to give spoilers.
Here’s the thing. Three men, in their forties, fifties as close friends as close can be. They are next to each other when facing a crisis, laugh hard when a celebration calls for, brainstorm to problem solve, etc. The friendship is so admirable. What a bond of men! In giving advice they are spot on, in lightening the mood they are witty with enough humor to change a serious atmosphere whether sad or good. I’ve smiled ever so often and moved too by the words of wisdom. Yes, each of these men have their own stories outside of their friendship, but guaranteed each were in support of each other when needed. Their stories, struggles, strengths and weaknesses are embodied in a strong brotherhood to make anyone envious of such a friendship. Forty episodes that i barely ever ffwd. Writing is good, deliverance of veteran actors are great. Subtitles aren’t always coherent but it’s good enough to understand the main points. I guess I’ve watched too many dramas to have a pattern I look or read between and this is one I was proud to fully enjoy regardless of.
I’m glad they produce dramas that goes beyond the seemingly favored audiences who like younger pretty boys and girls images. Don’t get me wrong, I do too. It’s just that the older viewers that I fall into also enjoy seeing cultured veteran characters. This is not to say this drama is only for matured audiences. Its message is same as other dramas but delivered by very handsome and beautiful veteran actors. Hope you can give it a try.
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I love lead pairing and their chemistry
This isn’t really the only drama I enjoyed the pairing but perhaps I haven’t come across one lately in my watching that these two awakened my interest. I haven’t seen the works of either so it was quite refreshing as if watching my first cdrama. These two compliment each other matching their arduous feelings. There’s a scene in the office that was embarrassingly lit.I liked how the male lead decided his feelings for the female lead is more important than his supposedly revenge. It doesn’t drag out which is a relief. There’s plenty of couple moments of sweetness instead of often last episode get together. Yes there’s an annoying character who tries to make trouble but lead guy is never swayed. Those things is what I often want to see and this drama has it. Sure it’s not perfect but overall, I highly enjoyed this for its simplicity, and overboard cuteness of leads.
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This review may contain spoilers
Don’t be a sleeper on a very good story
I totally base my reviews on my likes. I also like to point out that I have no credibility for being a writer. Okay, now that’s out of the way, let me speak on this wonderful drama. Warning ⚠️ I really don’t mean to give spoilers so my intent isn’t to. If it comes out that way, I apologize. I really hope though that I put it in a way that will make you want to find out for yourself.So the plot line is nothing new. Two lovebirds break up because of ambitions. Three years later they meet up. In the course of the story there is competition in office, business building, it’s ups and downs. At the same time, complications in human relationships play out, among lovers, peers. The crux of it all is the realness of how it portrays life. To me, the writing is really good, especially the way the relationships of the three main characters panned out. There was no cheesiness in the relations, but rather, a good look at how decisions shaped based on past hurts, fear of unknown, but most importantly, recognizing and honoring the value of each persons decision. Seriously, there are so many life lessons to learn from this story, from these characters.
The cast are good. These are more mature casts. I really enjoyed the cast who played the family members of the couples. Maybe because I’m so relieved none were hateful, screamers, or slappers. The dramas with these types of parents (too many for my likes) is so cringey I loathe it. Its ending was simple but poignantly happy.
On the last note, subtitles weren’t super good ( not dissing on subbers work as I appreciate the work and time) so hopefully you can find a site that may have a better one. I watched on DC, but maybe you’ll be lucky and find it adjusted. Give it a try. No matter your take, I really enjoyed it and feel you will too. Thanks
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Well worth the time
Everyone seems to have said it all; how great this series is. Mine will be short. The cast were phenomenal. LiQin, I’ve seen several of her dramas. I really like her character here. She really shone. Xiao Zhan, I’ve heard of and definitely he was very good here. There was a short kiss scene between them and I’m wondering if it’s something they agreed on. I don’t know bout Zhan, but in other Qin shows, she has barely intimate scenes. It must be her conditions. I think they chose a very good drama that highlights their flexibility and maturity.Story of growth, perseverance, as well as choices really highlights this wonderful production. We were young once too. This story depicts so much relatable circumstances of our youth into growing up. It’s a really good one.
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Stand or Fall
True to its title, you’ll either take a stand or a tumbling fall, you choose. I’ll just try to give my impressions and hopefullyit’ll give you some perspective if you’re on the fence.
Cons: subtitles where I watched was so bad that to really follow the gist of the business side of it, tends to keep you engaged. I mean you can definitely infer a lot (if you’ve seen one business drama you quickly pick up that two sides are working to advance, except there’s the other doing everything to sabotage that effort, right}. It was hard to follow along the business aspect of it, and it wasn’t anything so mind blowing to keep you teetering. In fact, it was a bit frustrating.
Pros: the cast! I always give grace to the hard working cast, no matter how the final product turns out. These are veteran casts and I automatically warm up to this type of series. They did a good job with what given. Whether by choice of what they agreed in contract, I always feel that there’s a hold back in level of chemistry. I’m so glad that one marriage portrayed did not add a cheat tag, but that the workaholic husband became mindful of his wife and supported her. I’m tired of cheating theme dramas so one married couple who worked through theirs was refreshing. The other married couple thought, at least, justice was served. As for main couple, they could have had more ‘them’ screen time but they were cute.
Overall, it’s not a bad production. I mean there’s lots they probably could have done better but still, it was fine. I liked it and if you have time, it’s worth seeing.
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This review may contain spoilers
Wasn’t magical, but strong females.
This is pretty decent in that the main women, Su Fei (FL) and An Ming (SFL) did not wallow in tears of ‘why me, poor me’ after hubbys infidelity. In fact, they stood their ground, never wavered to stand high on their decision to leave the past.I’m weary of weak, submissive, self sacrifice, wavering decision written women characters. The main two here shows how to stand on their own. That’s what I like most.
The story is nothing new. Two female leads bonded by chance over one knew the other’s hubby was being naughty. This formed a unique friendship. In the business world they battle wits to outdo, and manipulate. How? You’ll have to find out. I guarantee there is no tropes though as these females know how to walk and won’t be falling. Story paces well. All the side characters, from cute children to annoying ones served their parts to add flavor to the story. Stirred together, it’s pretty good entertainment.
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Wholesome, Without Nuisance, Love at Second Chances
Personally, I believe that love is only experienced once, and I mean love that is deep, committed, therefore, even in death. I say this to introduce this drama. ML, not because he was looking for it, but it coming naturally and subtly, is just a delightful unfolding story that foremost, makes this drama so favorable to me. A widower, dedicated to visit the columbarium for his wife, with a satisfying successful life while raising his young adult children finds love. While this plot is definitely not new, the way this has panned out is such out standing planning. Scenes are created with care and variety that brings believable moments where leads just naturally develop feelings for one another. Both leads are greatly casted and they are doing such a good job portraying their characters. I’ve always complained that directors can be more creative in staying away from too much recycled tropes we see in just about every romantic dramas. Here, it is done. So far, it’s been such nice blends of humor, seriousness, heart flutter, pieces weaving together to keep those invested in this weekend gem. Yes, it’s a gem.The leads are middle aged. Refreshing. Rarely do we see good made romantic dramas about this group range so this is such a welcomed surprise. The idol range are nice (creating lots of fantasizers) but there are so many viewers in this drama range so this is a great treat.
There are actually many couples in this story and each are just as engaging. I think that each one are given enough time and screen to develop, thus making this a wholesome family show. My bias is the main couple but then, the others just become important too as you start to feel and cheer for them too. The creations of build ups of relationships are nicely done. No nonsense misunderstandings, push and pulls. Instead, the directors presents us these characters whose story can be any of us and their management is straightforward.
Cast are so good. Veteran casts in older leads and up and coming younger ones are doing great. Veterans certainly have cemented their facial expressions to convey appropriate reactions it just amazes me. Ahn Jae Wook is eye candy and Uhm Ji Won is gorgeous and their vulnerable scenes of falling in love are so darn cute.
It might not be for everyone but it can be for anyone. Mind you this review is mid point of this ongoing show, but that’s the flow of it. Will follow with afterthoughts upon conclusion hoping upon hoping it remains good and not fall on kdrama curse of mid point fall apart.
🌟🌟**********************
Completed afterthoughts: 8/24/25 based on some themes
1. Love after widowed: it might not be for everyone but in the chance that it does, this surely would be a wonderful way of happening. Love and care, priority and GS n DS on top of that, laughed and smiled a lot. I liked that.
Remorse: Dok Tak and Miae, definitely committed wrong. Yes only because caught, as well as guilt did they come around. No one should be trodden to death by their mistakes, if they but repent and make restitution. That should be the biggest take of these two characters. Behind every bad person was once a shining pride of someone else. Our society needs to be more tolerant and of grant grace for those who truly makes the complete turnaround.
Child Abandonment: not all unfortunately, but more than enough there’s a story behind an ‘abandonment’. For whatever reason, there’s some worthy of sympathy. Having adopted, I sympathize greatly with the mother of my child as I understood her choice of giving up her child. If ever possible, reunion’s would be great. Se Ri being understanding and left door open for future communications about cute Ha Ni is so ideal. I’d love for my daughter to meet her birth mother someday as we left our country it’s been over thirty years. To have that closure if anything else. It’s humanity.
Big Families: it is definitely not surprising as my culture is very much similar in many ways. Definitely there’s pros and cons. Keys for it to be successful is respect and mutual family closeness. The brothers were that. It helped to accommodate their different dynamics as individual couples. As long as I have a definite space to be on my own (ha, a room), big families can be very helpful.
Overall, I enjoyed this family drama. I’ve watched so many already with absolute nonstop nonsense. This, without those nuances, is uplifting, wholesome, and wonderful. It started well and ended swell. To me that is.
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Not everything is black and white in a marriage.
I really enjoyed this drama and felt it was written well. I’m with a partner whom I enjoy life with and raised pretty good kids. As good as it is, definitely it’s not free from rough edges and heavy patches. I think though the key is honesty and willingness to compromise…of course love isn’t questioned. This drama at least put perspective into what Not to do for a healthy marriage so if anything, learn from this relationship.Hallelujah we have a very strong minded smart female character. I’m very satisfied with her performance and I’ve been on the fence with this actress until Fake It Til You Make It which I feel her character is similarly acted(Elvira Cai) . Male lead (Shao Feng) was good acting as the pompous ass jerk. His credit though is that he adored his son.
@Dedra70 in her review has an excellent breakdown of this drama if you want to know more. I just wanted to give credit to the cast and producers/writers of this story and hope that more people will give it a chance. It’s not rom-com, rather, it’s a look at how to build good and better relationships. Give this show a try as there’s some things to take away.
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A great watch
Started this with zero expectations. Suddenly I’m 7 episodes in and it hits like a quiet storm-honest, raw, and way too real. Yes, women in their 40’s trying to hold it together. They’re still trying to figure life out, stumbling and still fighting.The drama leans into hard truths-marital strain, parenthood strains, societal pressure so it can be heavy or emotionally intense.
I like the relationship of the main trio. Friendship at its best, supportive and caring. In short, the acting hits, writing is deep (cried at one dealing with a parent support), and yeah, emotions land hard. Don’t be a sleeper on this wonderful slice of life story.
Completed: afterthoughts
Not much else to add. To the end, it satisfactorily or beyond delivered its intent…to see life through the lens of women in their forties. Marital, pregnancy, career, love, parenting, self esteem…..it successfully wove through life with humor, intent, and emotions. There’s something here for everyone. The best part? The cast are so natural, it’s like watching life in real time. Every single one delivered. Minor but deserves to be praised. 💋. It perfectly captures the essence of how that scene is supposed to come off so absolutely, these veterans are professionally seasoned and appreciated.
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This review may contain spoilers
Long but my cup of tea
If you’ve read anything I’ve written before in review section, you’d notice I tend to give high ratings. I mostly visit to share my viewing pleasure (seldom unpleasant except for maybe one) whether it be the story or even acting. I say this mainly because I see quite many viewers did not particularly like this drama. Of course it’s alright but let me share mine.I don’t find anything quite new with the plot and storyline. We here who enjoy asian dramas can probably agree we’ve seen way too many, therefore it’s normal to see revolving plot lines. This drama involves four women, each with a love interest. After seeing Lin Shen in Dating in the Kitchen I found him charming and wanted to see more of his work. Not disappointed here. His role is quite different but lots of similarities. Wasn’t too sure about Elvira Cai but she made it work here. She comes out as being too strong minded but I think it balances with her counterpart. This pairing is good.
If you’re patient enough, it’ll all come together. There’s a mystery as to why one of lead girl hates main lead guy. It’s about relationship development of the four girls. We can like or dislike these characters and their personalities or life but that’s exactly why they’re written. There’s something to learn about from everyone. There’s pain and scars we carry but they don’t necessarily need to keep us from moving on happily. Those are central themes if you stay long enough in this story, you’ll get.
As I said, there’s enough variety in this story to keep me entertained. It’s not perfect but find me one without a single complaint of some sort. This ends well for all cast, especially the main leads who were just lovely when they finally became lovers, rather than enemies. Would revisit this again for sure.
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What I find refreshing is just that. Little by little layers are delved into so that we understand the characters as they develop. Not only that, it’s family oriented, gives us slice of life moments. It has palace intrigues, secrets, birthrights, and of course scheme.
Towards the end of season, as General declares his love for Shaoshang, it’s a perfect arrival to season two where we have lots to build on as we anticipate the direction of the leads romance. Mind you, there’s loads of great moments of the story to keep us entertained, laugh out loud, shed some tears, etc. I give so much credit to entire cast, yes leads and younger cast members but also salute to older members for their great contributions. It’s a well put together story so don’t be a sleeper on this great production. Just read subs fast cuz lots of script conversations. Enjoy!
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Yup, ardent is right
This is a vertical drama so don’t set your expectations too high on flowing plot, spectacular twists and turns, meaningfuldialogues, etc. What you can get though is a fairly simple and digestible meaningful story. On top of that, this pairing of leads are spot on. Their chemistry sizzles and there’s lots of skinship. They look very comfortable with each other which is a plus. If that is something you’re looking for, it’s here.
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Money doesn’t solve everything.
I started this series because subbing was fast. Not expecting a lot as description was vague, about a single mother, meeting up with other women of preschool children, Surprisingly for me, I stayed with it, now waiting for few more episodes to go.The story: A single mother got her son into a sought after kindergarten school, meets the elite moms of the group, and thus embarks on a journey of ups and downs. There are about five families in story with their own struggles. Through their stories, it engages us in life as seen through theirs with themes such as infidelity, bad investments, parent involvement in marriage, rebellious children, high expectations on kids, etc. While lead is single mom and kindergarten teacher, screen time is focused on all these families so this is one where we can say leads are multi. Leads include the kindergartners who are very much a part of the story.
It’s a drama about life. There’s much to take and appreciate. While the group belong in upper class, we can learn what NOT to do or become. No matter how much more money people have, they experience the same hurts and pains of ordinary people so it has much to offer about life and it’s challenges.
It kept me engaged. Episode to episode keeps me glued to see next. So, if this is the family type of drama you like, you’ll enjoy it. There’s a slow burn romance of single mom so it’s cute. Enjoy
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The story itself is fine. A man with a hidden side that most women probably won’t want to be involved with. Though two episodes from seeing where this will end, it’s still a very nice series that touches on different themes that makes it likable. One theme that stands out is parent child relationship. This one has a very complicated one. I wonder what i would do in this one if in child shoes. Then the main one of course is the heart. Male lead does have a complicated life. It’s not complicated until the heart is involved. What to do? How to untangle?
You think about these things in your own reality and find that even in real life, it’s quite tough. So, it ends here so far as I await the last two episodes. I so want these two complicated souls to have the best they’ve found in themselves. I’m gonna bet it.
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Do Not Miss Out
I can affirm and confirm that this is one of the best (if not best) romcom drama this year. I can stop at episode ten and be very satisfied. In fact, it would be the most perfect beginning to an ending. For me especially, i find it more rewarding because i found it on my own without seeing or reading beforehand about it. Like the drama, Tell Me You Love Me, these two are like a gem that snuck quietly in when I wasn’t looking, yet hold the fiercest of satisfaction to become an embedded treasure.My reason is simple. First the story. I’ve seen it all. Rich and poor, hate to love, first sight love, cold to warm, etc. I think I may have seen something similar as this, reformed mobster, girl falls in love. Yeah im sure I have. Regardless, I love it here.
The cast! Absolutely the best! The side characters, especially the ml “reformed” family makes me wanna have a bunch like them too. They’re hilarious, dedicated, and lifetime friends once in their circle. They are such an important bunch in this drama that made it super extra fun. Leads? What a perfect pairing. Uhm Tae Goo as male lead is superb as the cold, no nonsense, guy turned soft. Oh my gosh, how he acts, reacts at his own change of falling in love is hilarious but so so heartwarming. True to the saying, she fell first but he fell harder……add butterscotch with honey dripped in savory chocolate. Han Seon Hwa as female lead is soft, kind, and plays her role perfectly. Not only is she beautiful but she’s the one to tame and jellify the man.. Everyone, even fl best friend and her love interest are cute. Everyone in the cast makes this drama memorable.
Like I said, for me it’s perfect. Well weaved, acted, and one to definitely go back to over and over. It’s so good. If it ended at ep 10, it would be perfect. Glad though there’s six more of these guys that’s making my drama watching so fun. Don’t miss out on a gem.
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