FreshKicks

I don't feel invested in Guy and Liu.

Maybe Est (Note) should have been cast as Guy. Now, that's a man who's hard to take your eyes off.

Someone needs to tell Liu that you don't smell the base notes of a scent right after spraying. They come with the dry-down.

The character in the kdrama who's the counterpart of Saint was squeaky-clean, and even ended up inviting the ML to live with him. Saint, on the other hand, is a bit of a conniver.

It's funny how Saint is enough of a jerk that I don't think there will be anyone wishing he beat out the ML in winning the FL's heart, as there was with the kdrama.

I hope before the end there's at least two or three episodes where Liu has figured out who Faye really is and reads her to filth. I can't take much more of Liu's "woe is me", passive personality.

I also hope there's no tragic, secret story behind Faye's evil persona. The worst thing about the kdrama version was Sooah's redemption.

I wonder if they filmed a scene in the dressing room where Liu got locked in there with Guy. This was a key turning point in the kdrama version, and when they made a point of saying the door was broken it got my hopes up.

This version is like the PG version of the kdrama. Everything is softer around the edges. If you like this and haven't seen the kdrama, you should check it out. It really runs you through the wringer.

We're supposed to believe that two people shared the same hallucination for TWO YEARS? (Or if you include Tee, that would be THREE people sharing it.)

Okay, fine, maybe the drug makes them *think* two years have passed whereas they've been checked out for only a couple of days. But even if that is the case, who's the one "blowing smoke" to keep them from waking up?

Finally, killing off the one character who was not only 100% innocent but was the sweetest of them all ... just stupid.

I still think they did a great job otherwise.

Once again, a series that is going great opts for an ending that makes no sense. I'm sure somebody thought that last-minute twist was brilliant, but when you think about it, it makes no sense.

More below.

Well done, sir!

I keep returning to watch bits and pieces of this and it never fails me. The thrills are still there and all those touching moments still land with all of the force they originally had.

I hadn't stopped by here in a while, though: the happiest comment section on MDL. And how about that rating!

This is such a great series. The rating really makes me sad.

Yes, to watch this is a truly repulsive ordeal. When I endured it during it's original airing it was only out of a twisted curiosity over how low it would go.

Yes! Also my pet peeve. Good to know.

"Non's ruin" ... I really like that way of putting it. Not merely a downfall or bad fate, but ruin, like being obliterated.

Which you can find here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NMlRDBLbd4

In the Kdrama the ML made a comment toward the FL that she interpreted as a put-down, similarly to what happens here (although in the Kdrama it is just in passing and they don't spend any time together) so yes, the relationship starts as a misunderstanding. Liu has been beaten down so much that she's almost incapable of recognizing kindness in a classmate.

This is an easy 8/10 so far.

The title "Beauty Newbie" seems to indicate that this will be a less serious take on the "Gangham Beauty" story, and some of the performances (Mike, I'm looking at you, you big ham) are goofy in a way that seems to confirm that.

I'm curious to learn what it is about Liu that attracted Guy to her when they were in high school. In the Kdrama version it was Mi Rae's love for dancing. That's not in the mix here, and since we know Guy has an issue with fragrances it would seem strange to me that he'd be attracted to Liu because of her love for them. I'd rather it not be because he felt bad that she was an outcast.

How perfect is it that they cast Win's younger brother to play the young version of Guy! For obvious reasons he really does look like a younger Guy. It's an easy choice once you see it on screen but I thought it was cool.

And it's interesting that they cast a much-older-than-college-age actress to play Liu. A lot of people thought Im Soo Hyang was too old to play Mi Rae, but in both cases I think it helps to sell the idea that the FLs got a lot of face work done.

And, sorry, but I don't think Faye is that pretty.

Message sent!

A Japanese teen romance that doesn’t star Suzuka Ouji. I wasn’t sure it was possible. 😆😆😆😆

Seeing him play rough and tough will be interesting!

You deserve a BL merit badge for this. Thanks for taking the time to post the info. If I can get the raws and subs for the series I'll make a BL cut for them and get back to you.