Hanatoko

I see the MDL comments are once again reminding me why I need to stop checking MDL comments.

This was beautiful from start to finish and had me crying right from episode 1. Its rating being this low is a crime.

At a rate of 2 episodes per week that schedule fits exactly with 20 episodes.

Historical dramas typically get 20 episodes. This isn't something new or recent.

Have the subtitles improved? I watched episodes 1 and 2 but getting through them was... an ordeal.

Having seen both this and the Japanese version, I must say I think I enjoyed this one faaar more despite liking both. It fixed just about everything I didn't like in the Japanese version. The FL is less frustrating, the SML is less of an asshole and more redeemable, the main leads spend so much more time together all throughout the plot, and the ending felt more satisfying and conclusive.

I did however like that the Japanese version put more focus on the importance/theme of shoes, which this drama missed out on.

This is a weird one for me. Contrary to some others here, I loved the first third of this drama because I am into MOBA games and the leads had great chemistry playing together. There's also at least somewhat of a plot moving them forward and giving them a goal.

But then you move into the middle section which drags along at a snail's pace as both leads mope, and the drama focuses on the ML's job to an unnecessary degree. There's still some plot here, though it doesn't feel particularly entertaining or satisfying. Overall this section was severely boring.

Then the last third was peak adorable romantic fluff, but nothing really happens as there's zero conflict to keep things interesting. It felt like I was watching a 10 episode happy ending, which can be fun but at some point you wonder why things haven't just ended yet.

The drama could've benefit from being cut shorter so that the long slog of a middle section is less painful and their time together towards the end is more cohesive/purposeful. Nonetheless though, I enjoyed my time watching it. Yang Yang and Dilraba are infectiously cute together and, at least for me, make this drama worth watching.

He has all of my investment. He better have the happiest of endings.

This FL makes it impossible to have miscommunication because she will scream into your face everything she feels and everything that needs to be said. It's great.

They DID tell us this is Part 1. We've known this show would be 30 episodes for months now.

The difference is this isn't really a "Season 1 and Season 2". The show was written from the beginning to have 30 episodes. Unlike American TV shows, they didn't wait to see whether the show was successful and then change the story to accommodate. They're just splitting the episodes into parts so they can film and edit.

I don't personally find it unrealistic because people like him exist. He got as far as he did because he's a suck up who brings in big name clients. Competence doesn't matter if you're charismatic and bring in the money. We've seen him before rage about losing partnership with that association of doctors, and this was a continuation of that.

This basically stops trying to be a romcom halfway through. The first half was light, fun, cute and whimsical and then it abruptly turns into a really haphazard overdone melodrama where people stand around sulking.

I wouldn't say it's horrible, but it's definitely not a good "romcom".

I don't think I've ever been quite as frustrated with a FL as I have been with this one. Her decisions are constantly questionable and stupid. The drama is enjoyable overall, but she certainly made the journey far more annoying than it needed to be.

It's a weekend drama, and right now there are so many notable dramas airing on the weekend so it has a ton of competition.

A lot of these commenters have never seen a musical outside of a Disney movie and it shows.

Pretty sure it's intentional so that it can be read both ways. Note that the drama is about the people who "clean up" after the messes (shit) celebrities (stars) get into.

The original Korean title is also a joke because while it literally translates to "Shooting Star", the word 별똥별 has 똥 in it (which translates to poop).

I wouldn't call this anything close to a perfect ending, but not because they didn't live "happily ever after" together. While I would've enjoyed a Baekdo ending, I appreciate that the writer stuck to the story and theme they wanted to tell. I just don't think they did it as seamlessly as they could have and have shown themselves capable of.

For one thing, given how they made use of it, I don't feel we needed the 2020 timeline. It added very little to the story, and if anything undermined their decision by expressing her regrets. The entire ending basically takes place in 2009, and it should've stayed there. You could argue future Hee Do's lines solidify the message/theme, but at that point it's just beating viewers over the head because they're all pretty clearly noted in the prevalent timeline already through the events of the story and monologue. This timeline either needed to be fleshed out more or dropped entirely.

I think the most glaring issue for me though is that the Baekdo breakup felt logical but was undercut by her husband having... seemingly the same problem? It made total sense for Hee Do to break off their relationship because she had already lived her entire childhood having to put up with constant absences. She was traumatized by her mother's neglect. She didn't want that life for herself in the future, and their jobs would've resulted in just that. But then... we see in the present that the father is abroad and never around, and Min Chae was clearly invested in her mother's relationship with a past love so it doesn't seem like their relationship is going all that well. Further, we never see this husband in 2009 even when she wins her medal, and he's never mentioned even in passing. He's just completely absent. Hee Do also makes a fairly pessimistic comment at the funeral about how it's easier to break an engagement than to divorce, and that seems pretty odd for someone who is newly-wed.

I don't care that we don't know who the husband is. He's not really important in terms of identity. But for all we know he's just as absent as her mother and Yi Jin are/were, so what did she really gain in the end? It's extremely unsatisfying and just leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Am I supposed to believe that she's happy? The drama certainly didn't give me that impression.

WHY DID I START THIS BEFORE IT FINISHED 😭

I can only blame myself for watching yet another Mame drama.