InspectorMegre

A fun mini cooking class and intro to military life, with a star-studded cast, UNHINGED

The actors in this drama had a blast, it was visible they really enjoyed horsing around, as most of them usually played villains and here they were good guys having fun with food. It was nice to see their commaraderie it was nice to see positive messages about trusting yourself and doing your best, honestly, and ppl helping each other, and... the drama was a miniature cooking class lmao

The drama was a lighthearted, warm and bright advertisement for the military, but it was also realistic in some ways and showed military faults that everyone knows about - corruption, rank dominance, bullying, red tape, etc.

The military corruption was showed only on the low level, and resolved in a ... rosey way ... but ... why not. The drama did not attempt to bite more than it could chew. The problems were appropriate for the situation - a new military cook in a far outpost.

The drama focused on showing something really important - military as a place for broken/poor people to receive training, gain work skills and perhaps even life calling, and a community.
ML was a depressed grieving young person and this cooking job in the military gave him something to do and led him to discover his life calling. He also made some connections and friends. That has always been one of the major draws of joining the military and ... still is :)

Food is definitely one of the major tools for bonding ppl, and esp in military, it is something to look forward to and it definitely boosts the morale and makes better teams.

But the drama showed that by portraying the military as a place for gourmet meals, as if the military were a vacation with 5-star food service, and all the high ranking officials being gourmets lmao eating gourmet every day in the officer's cafeteria..... eating French 5-star cooking in officer's cafeteria... So if they go to war... what will they eat? lmao

The drama pushed 5-star cooking too much as if that food is to be expected in the military but ... after all.. why not?

For the soldiers who are there bc they have to be there, imo it is ok they eat gourmet stuff and get fat, since they are not really going to any war any time soon - well we hope, since there was 350,000 Korean troups in Vietnam war. Korea had most soldiers there after the USA.

But sure, this might be a solution to world peace - all military globally should be eating luxury gourmet 5-star food and being fat and happy, and refusing to go to wars etc bc they couldnt eat such nice food.
Everyone will be happy staying in their barracks and living a good life, eating well and having fun. Why not. I think we found the solution to world peace :)

Also, when those well fed and happy soldiers take down their uniform, they will be healthy enough to make some babies, which S Korea so desperately needs, since it is so fashionable to be super skinny frail and sickly tired looking, which is one of the reasons why S Korea has globally lowest birth rate. Who is interested in s.x when they have not eaten properly for ages and are constantly on some diet and/or plastic surgery tricks. LET US FORGET THOSE AND START EATING WELL AGAIN.
Even dramas as recent as 2018 have a lot healthier looking people with more meat aka muscle on them.

So.. this plan about fattening the soldiers with good food seems to be ideal on so many levels ... I am all for this plan. Start now!

=== As for food: ======

Personally, imo there was too much cooking scenes, so I had to fast forward although I am a passionate cook. I am not really interested to LOOK at food. But there was some useful stuff that will help me cook :) I am interested in a cookbook with recipes from the drama. The last dish was awesome.

and yeah -
Ah finally someone puts French cooking where it belongs - in France.
Korean food is amazing, so nutritious and healthy and yummy, produces lean and healthy ppl, and I am glad the drama got to celebrate it.
Imo the real French cooking is the French village cooking. and that ... resembles Korean food in so many ways... all kinds of stews and soups, lots of veggies.... and that is the kind of stuff good to eat.... and is NOT served in French restaurants bc it is "too plain" lmao . The French restaurant stuff shown in this drama is for the show lmao Those pastries look like they are gonna clog your intestines in an instant. That's why French eat so little of that "French cooking"

I got tired of kdramas peddling foreign stuff. it is ironic that both in kdramas and cdramas the military had to step in to remind ppl of their roots :) But someone had to stop some French restaurant or fried chicken, sandwich or whiskey shop etc sponsoring a product placement ... (in cdamas, the military reminded ppl that men shouldnt wear too much makeup i.e. look like anorexic teenage girls with tons of makeup on. Right on, Chinese military!)

So the proper salute to Korean food and the fact we learned to cook rice properly and to assemble a Korean dish is enough to make me feel satisfied, pun intended.

KSJ got his lady - and he was a lot more ... suave and experienced than real KSJ should have been lmao
The commander finally stepped out...
and it all ended well, with an entry to Season 2. Yay.

But I think the next step is to have that KANGLIN COOKBOOK with recipes in digital form with all the scenes from the drama. This drama was a miniature cooking class. I am interested only in the Korean recipes :)

=== As for Support Roles: ====

The character of the commander portrayed by Lee Sang Yi was
a perfect "spice ingredient", without him the drama would not be it. Each drama needs AMAZING support roles or else it doesnt work. So he is that in this drama. He is portraying a super complex character with total mastery and conviction. The plus is his "beautiful" well kept sleek-urban baby face, which adds to totally convey the absurdity of that character. HE IS PERFECT IN THIS ROLE.

His role is that theoretician, that sofa general without common sense and skills, that someone who wants to get promoted no matter what happens to soldiers, that suave as# kisser, that someone who pretends to stick to the books yet does NOTHING and then takes all the credit, that someone who hides behind the "rules" to do nothing and throw soldiers under the bus.
He is portraying it *perfectly*.

****** His role is calculated, greedy, ambitious, cruel nasty SLIMY henchman and indirect-villain on one hand, and on the other hand, a naive little good boy***** Someone willing to do anything to benefit himself, and delulu enough to convince himself it is ok bc the superior said so; someone who HAS some compassion for his comrades but does not move a finger to help the situation. Someone who puts HIMSELF FIRST regardless of the post and soldiers, while not being a truly bad guy.

This is a complex role. And Lee Sang Yi is so good at it!!! it is fun to watch him! he portrays so many layers of this role.

His role is not just a comedic element. The commander is a satire on such military... ppl who went to military school but have no aptitude for it, and enlisted ppl who try to climb higher. Why did that soldier decide to become a commander, is a good question. He is certainly a fish out of water - however, he is there, chasing some fame honors and ranks, and the soldiers are stuck with him.

The drama is clearly portraying some core issues with the military - the corruption of stealing food supplies, the pecking order, the bullying by rank etc, lack of women, etc etc and Lee Sang Yi's sofa general character is one of chronic military problems.
The sofa general problem is a huge problem for military bc a sofa general is TOTALLY incapable of solving anything and only causes problems.
In this case, he let soldiers starve under the previous chef, he had no idea about bad food supply, in the mock battle he was useless, in a real battle he would cause deaths of millions of people. He is ... a clumzy naive dumb greedy guy in a wrong job.

Plus they let Lee Sang Yi keep his sleek urban look. So... the commander's manicured perfect baby face is a visual of what he stands for :) His face is like the visual signal from the drama as to who this character is :)
In the same way they picked the ML actor bc he looks so young, feeble, frail and vulnerable, a skinny tiny guy
Also, Lee Sang Yi's character face provides a stark contrast to the other guy in charge of the barracks, the big fat guy with the round wrinkled face who always plays villains and here plays the typical "rat" soldier who goes against the rules, keeps eating everywhere, and keeps cutting corners, while maintaining alliances with people he needs to be friendly with to continue going. In this drama, he turned out to also be someone who actually cares to do something to help when the times are rough. The visual for that soldier, the actor's face and body, are also picked to visually signal what kind of character he is.

The complexity in Lee Sang Yi's character - and thus the MASTERY of the actor in portraying many layers of it and thus the FUN of watching him in the role - is that he is not a bad evil guy, like the guy above him who is the master mind of stealing food supplies and who used that other soldier - The Inspector - for his purposes.
He is a naive genuinely decent honest guy but a COMPLACENT guy and also a GREEDY guy, SO HE ACTS LIKE THOSE 3 MONKEYS - no see, no say, no hear -
a pion who feels kinda helpless and also super ambitious. So, he deludes himself that everything is all right as long as it comes from the top. So he deludes himself that the lower level guys are justly scorned.
--> So he actually cares about the female Platoon Leader, but on the other hand, keeps shutting her up and going behind her back and doing things that harm the soldiers... He is concerned that the food is bad but he says nothing and even scolds ppl who bring it up .... he does NOTHING ever to help anyone, although he sees them suffering and even feels some concern - but it does not matter to him - bc HE WANTS TO GET PROMOTED.

He is too dumb to think about what he is seeing and to think ahead
and he is smart enough to see what he needs to do to get ahead
and he is slimey enough and ah so eager to please so that he gets promoted, so he is totally willing to ENTHUSIASTICALLY act as an umbrella and fit into the as@ of his commander and then open inside and never come out... He keeps bowing down and obeying blindly and ENTHUSIASTICALLY, no matter what
He is naive enough to believe his superior
He is evil enough to just throw the soldiers under the bus so that he can get promoted
He is slimy enough to delude himself that everything is ok bc the superior said so

And he is good enough and smart enough to remember what happened to Major Lim and to feel bad about it, and native enough to ask questions and dumb and naive enough to believe the answers

So he is like a babe in the woods, like a Little Red Riding Hood meeting the Big Bad Wolf - but the complexity is, he is also Little Red Riding Hood who willingly jumped into the wolf's mouth and willingly burned grandma's house bc the Wolf said so

And so this commander is a PERFECT example of what really exists esp in the military - a similar type is common to every hierarchy/red tape organization and big corporation, but in the military bc of ranks and order to blindly listen to superiors it is even worse.

Military has to take in essentially everyone healthy enough to qualify, bc they need meat in numbers, so then they are stuck with so many ppl being below par, and so the whole situation is quite tricky... and this ineffective sofa general commander realistically exists in that environment bc SOMEONE has to watch over the post and a few soldiers. That is why military is ok with losing ppl here and there .... as it is impossible to ensure quality everywhere.... and so ppl are just numbers.... This is a sad and realitic quagmire of military... Companies lose money but military loses lives... . So it is in their interest to somehow ensure that proper people are commanders - but ... as you can see in this drama, it does NOT always happen...
and esp when some evil dude realizes how much space there is for personal benefiting and then starts exploiting the system... e.g. the Pentagon's $14,000 for individual 3D-printed toilet seat lids and $1,280 for single utility cups... the higher commander here who steals money on food supplies... and a lot lot more a lot bigger amounts..... This drama is only about essentially petty stealing...

Lee Sang Yi is a perfect example of such a sofa general commander, he really brought it to life, made it real.
So, imo, without Lee Sang Yi, the drama would have been so bland. He spices it up ah so well.

Oh by chance I ran into Spice Up Our Love 2-hr kdrama. The ML actor there was the local commander here, that theoretician, kiss up to get promoted "armchair warrior" that was picture perfect obedient soldier chasing promotion for the entire drama and then solved everything in the last episode ... ...

and the audience complained the actor was out of place...... Well perhaps if you saw him in SUOL maybe you were prejudiced lmao

But after watching SUOL trailer, I can see WHY he was perfect for the role here and how his role from SUOL totally transferred to this drama... His robotic "perfection" and always saying and doing the politically correct thing... his major big time as@ kissing..... "loyalty".... ...totally!!! SUOL persona totally transfers into the military setting.

Whoever saw the commonality and brought that actor into this drama is a sheer genius

=====
And the ending is actually quite a fantasy low probability event, but heck, this is a drama, why not :)

This drama has many light comedic undertones. It has everything from slapstic crude, to situation humor, to nice warm "honest feedback" and bantering, to very super crafty clever satire and wicked jestering that will fly over the head of most ppl

So - whatever level of intelligence you are at, you will surely find something funny for yourself

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A bunch of insane psychotic people elbowing up and having a mud fight in a cesspool

This is like a study of insane psychotic people
a bunch of ppl doing whatever it takes to climb up the social/power/money ladder.... Like a huge mud fight in a cesspool.... So ugly... and without ANY character growth... the characters keep going down, instead of up...
So this is very Hwood type plot .... contrary to the principles of good storytelling ... and thus, a waste of time. NO CONTENT.

The characters start being shady... FL is a chronic liar and manipulator pushing to move on up higher.... the ML is the only one who is somewhat decent, at least his initial goals were to bring justice and revenge for his father. Nana poses with her French haircut and super thick obviously plastic lips...

And the drama keeps getting only worse
This is like a study of insane psychotic people all playing mind games as to how to step over each other. BORING.
6 episodes was enough to get the idea and DROP

The drama has some good acting but a cheap plot - and the lack of content is "made up" by shocking provocative decadent scenes, like .... grabbing an item by bare hand out of a used toilet to appease the villain, or two women making out hard.

Some people said the drama is supposedly a social commentary on what actors etc are forced to do - but that is the point, this drama shows NOBODY FORCED THEM - these ppl **** willingly chose **** to engage in very low level and criminal stuff to get status etc and climb up to the top.

THE CHARACTERS IN THIS DRAMA ARE ALL SUPER GREEDY ELBOWING UP AND THEY NEVR GROW, there is nothing noble or positive (except ML had some and lost it)
Why spend 12 hours watching a bunch of ppl in deep hell and CHOOSING to stay there

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BLOODY VIOLENCE LIKE WEAK HERO + KIDS PEDDLING DRUGS, KILLING TEACHERS, ED POLICE BEATING THEM

Hm wth is Netflix doing to S Korea with this drama? Do S Korean schools look like this??? I didnt think so. I think this is trying to do some damage to S Korean image... ?

For sure, AMERICAN SCHOOLS ARE FULL OF DRUGS LIKE THIS

SO THIS DRAMA IS A LOT WORSE THAN WEAK HERO / STUDY GROUP BC WE SEE SCHOOL KIDS SELLING DRUGS, KILLING THEIR TEACHERS AND EACH OTHER,
AND YEAH THE ED POLICE BEATING THEM

THIS IS A NIGHTMARE AMERICANIZED PROPAGANDA
-----------
The fantasy of this drama is too painful to watch, bc the plot is based on overpowered MC who never does wrong, beats up students but never harms them... He too never gets hurt and has miraculously powerful powers, and has political backing that is based on integrity and never goes away. IT IS A FANTASY FOR SURE.

In real life, this "education police" is ripe for abuse. Sure these super hard cases are solved but in real life, the lines would get blurred so easily and the educational police could be bullies too... and there would be severe consequences, e.g. the education police could severely injure or even kill some of the bad students

and teachers are not all angels and victims are not all angels
And in real life, victims and abusers are usually from troubled families, sometimes poor and sometimes rich, and rich and powerful are definitely privileged and often abusive, so those deep societal issues have to be addressed

So - setting that fundamental drama flaw aside -

This review builds on the great review by @HappyPacket. I watched only 3 eps so far and I really appreciate the SA, beating, cell phones, etc issues the review pointed out so astutely

I agree that the drama went overboard with portraying teachers ONLY as good guys , and giving them permission to beat up students too, like hitting students' palms with a stick or the education police really beating up bad students.

Imo the drama went overboard too with portraying victims as stupid, dumb, naive, isolated, and/or passive, as victims incapable of self defending - but I think that was done to exaggerate to really show the traits that all victims do have
And the drama went slightly overboard to show how the other students and teachers did not care - but again it really showed what it REALLY LOOKS LIKE IN REAL LIFE - the environment of selfishness.

Hiding real SA *sexual assault and harassment" is a LOT MORE COMMON than false accusations of SA, and I agree that the real SA should have been addressed. That "livestream influencer" girl was first a victim of real SA. Teachers and many adults do such bad stuff to kids and other adults, and most victims just eat the sh.t and stay silent, and if they speak up, the society shuns them, because the perpetrator is usually a skilled sociopath/psychopath.

I am also glad that the false accusation of SA was brought up as a part of sociopathical manipulation, bc sociopaths are actually very common and we never talk about it.

In this case, the drama showed us how a sociopath works, and it was very obvious, nobody from the audience could miss it in. In real life, it is often done behind the scenes via gossip, gaslighting, making deals, and the other people "beat up"/destroy the victim, and the lying sociopath stays well hidden. SOCIOPATHS ARE SUPER DANGEROUS BECAUSE THEY ARE "NICE PEOPLE" AND EXTREMELY WELL HIDDEN.
MUCH OF BAD STUFF IN THE WORLD HAPPENS BY SOCIOPATHIC MANIPULATION where the sociopath manipulates others to harm/destroy the victim and the sociopath stays hidden and "innocent". https://www.recoveryplusjournal.com/2017/10/the-empathy-trap/


and yeah there are also psychopaths, the ones who directly attack, and often from a well camouflaged position, usually in a positions of power, like Congressman and his son. Most who you call "sadists" are actually psychopaths

The last thing that the other review did not mention and imo is the KEY to everything is that all this beating up of few bad guys and the teachers beating up any student is .... very stupid bandaiding.
Yeah sure there are always some sociopaths/psychopaths who are bad apples and cause problems. BUT
The real problems are all the OTHER students, who never said a word, who blindly obeyed bullies, who GENUINELY LAUGHED at bullies' beating up, humiliating the victims. *** THAT *** is the problem.
The real problem is that we saw ONE other student who was raising questions and trying to raly other students, but we also saw how all other students just ran away.
The real problem is that we saw only 3 complaints to this "educational police" - how come no other students complained to anyone, not even other teachers or their own parents
The real problem is that the victims were dumb and did not take any action.
The real problem is that the bullied teachers were dumb and did not take any action. We saw some teacher talking about it but we never saw teachers join together to take action.
The real problem is that the teachers and principal were corrupt and/or dumb and did not take any action
The real problem is that the parents did not take any action. The bullying was either by kids who had parents who "beat up" / destroyed other kids' parents and teachers, or by kids who had no functional parents.
The parents of bullied kids never took any proper action.... They did not know their kid was bullied.... they did not care.... OR they were naive and stupidly stood up to the bullies and destroyed themselves and the kid
The parents of OTHER kids never took any action.... did their kid even tell them about bullying that prevented learning and destroyed students' lives?

So until this GENERAL SOCIETAL SITUATION changes, the bad guys have a free reign
And the general situation will NOT change by teachers beating the students or parents beating the students. it can change ONLY if the students inwardly know what is right and what is wrong and stand up together against any violations.

I dislike the drama for so much violence. The "education police" beats up students, and students beat each other up just like in Weak Hero or Study Group.
I will fast forward this for research, just to see what other people like to watch, and what the current bullying strategies are


InspectorMegre 14 hours ago

In summary:
well this drama shows it as it is - the OTHER kids participate!!!!!! THE OTHER KIDS DO WHAT THE BULLY SAYS... or stay silent or LAUGH, fu.king idiots, and teachers too. As simple as that. THE PUBLIC IS **** S T U P I D *****

THE PUBLIC IS **** S T U P I D *****
THE PUBLIC IS **** S T U P I D *****
THE PUBLIC IS **** S T U P I D *****
THE PUBLIC IS **** S T U P I D *****
None of this would happen nor continue if the public was not THAT stupid.

And Dae Seok and otehrs are so blindly immature to commit suicide. Those bully idiots are NOT worth anyone's attention, and esp not life. Go take some martial arts class, run fast, and change schools.

WHERE ARE PARENTS AND FAMILY OF VICTIMS???

If all the kids got up and shut up those bullies - it would be over.

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Amazing fun rather realistic portrayal of "good guys" who are "ordinary" guys, not idols

Wow this is an amazing and so realistic drama with amazing acting and a great plot, very funny yet very serious and realistic.

Yes drama is male oriented and indirectly glorifies men - but it picked some good guys who deserve to be praised. The leads are very capable real life "ordinary" men who DO deserve praise. These are handsome, capable, althetic, strong, healthy,, energetic, RADIANT "ORDINARY" good guys, who work for good causes, who are good husbands, dads, neighbors, friends, who are *giving* to others. THEY ARE OF SERVICE beyond just idolizing their pretty pictures....

These men are not decorative items but live, active, "worker bees", they are lively and active contributors to society.... Also they are healthy, they spend time outdoors and in physical activity, they have male friends, they are great at their jobs and a good neighbors who do CHORES to make sure that everything runs smoothly. These guys make sure everything works well.
And, this drama involves running, physical prowess, outdoors, and the guys are also friendly, charming, fun, and go-getters.

Which of the modern "idols" have ANY of these traits???

The last fight between JDD and Sullivan was the metaphor for this - the rich pretty idol-looking guy was a selfish snowflake...

SO HOW DID WE WENT FROM THE BUNCH OF HEALTHY "HEROES NEXT DOOR" - to this??

----->>> WHY ARE WE GLORIFYING MALE IDOLS WITH THEIR GIRLY FACES AND MAKEUP AND FLYING AROUND IN CHIFFON ROBES GAZING AT EACH OTHERS" EYES??? Those ghosts do not have families nor community, they are isolated in their pretty bubble and USED JUST AS DECORATIVE OBJECTS, fantasy items, essentially dollss for fans.

In modern dramas, it is either these idols or guys who look real, like th ML in Climax, but are totally morally questionable and just elbowing their way forward by any means.
The ultimate is the skinny chabol who went to gym and dieted to give that 10% BMI look, and who grants his chick her every whim and every wish

WTH HAPPENED????? How did we end up with super skinny frail actors who are clearly some couch potatoes and totally lack energy and liveliness?? Who are serious, cannot smile, have no charm, their personality is like cardboard. And are into elbowing their way in the world instead of being helpful...

HOW DID WE END UP WITH FRAIL GIRLY MEN WHO LOOK AND BEHAVE LIKE STILL PICTURE DECORATIVE ITEMS????? The modern idols really look like photographs... and are only good for that... They have personality of cardboard and no impact to real life, like ... taking trash out or taking care of kids. They are androgynous looking and very "off the ground" in the sky pie... I cannot see them fixing your car, carrying your groceries, or for that matter, spending the night in hot pursuit, I think they will collapse from exaustion - and also - that interferes with their beauty sleep and wearing facial masks and skincare...

How did we end up with worshipping pretty male faces - pretty as in "pretty girl" bc their faces are so ... girlish.. androgynous ..... and so skinny... How did we end up witih kdramas that show very despicable self serving characters from start to end - as the leads... ????

I am watching Heroes Next Door in April 2026 and totally enjoying it. It is a great comedy. And, even if you are going to watch some good looking great guys, this is a lot better drama than watching some trash like Pursuit in Jade or Perfect Crown, which are straight forward disgusting, as they portray greedy arrogant peopl in pursuit of more greed and arrogance, without any trace of character growth. Totally totally not kdrama concept.

Ah, but they are rich? The idol guys are rich, that's what it is? A porcelan doll that can take you to the shopping mall and buy you stuff... ? thats what this is all about?

And ..

I am dumbfounded. IS THE MESSAGE THAT ONLY SECRET AGENTS AND SPECIAL FORCES ARE ALTHLETIC, STRONG, CAPABLE *AUTHENTIC* MEN?
and the "popular" men are all into plastic surgery, dieting and makup AND SERVE FOR DECORATIVE PURPOSES ONLY? while thy elbow their way up the social ladder...

HOW DID THIS KIND OF DECORATIVE GIRLY MAN-CHILD DECORATIVE OBJECT become THE standard of popularity for men???? WTH????

First of all, what is wrong with women, to like guys like that??? Why are adult women behaving like little girls who like playing with porcelain dolls???
Yeah these new popular guys ar all like porcelain dolls. Exactly like porcelain dolls, since their faces are so pale, they never outdoors. There is absolutely nothing sexy about them, they look like they will fall down and flip over and faint with exhastion any time.
And when they move, they are not moving to do something good for others, but to advance THEMSELVES.
As usual, women are guilty for creating and upholding awful men, bc they admire stupid awful things. I am DUMBFOUNDED. Those porcelain dolls girly decorative items guys could not exist without 100000 chicks supporting that.

Now to be clear: this drama too is a bait for women :) There are guys in here for every taste :) and the drama is a bait for kids and society in general :)
All the guys listen to their wives :) actually the wives patronize them, JDD's wife called him her eldest son... and acts ah so prude.... the wives behave like their mothers.... :( the typical kdrama bs...
and the guys are great with kids and housework...

They are superheroes, they never got hurt - although the drama is realistic and shows that all heros (except the NIS guy...) have limitations, aches, pains and consequences from fighting and being beaten....
The drama makes the characters quite angelic, their character flaws are not elaborated - but some flaws of some characters are shown and TALKED ABOUT - so we are aware the characters have flaws, but the tone is kept light.... .
And the drama kinda glorifies certain things, eg it is an advertisement for NIS, etc. Yeah NIS and military are gonna go down if they get the idol boys whose stamina exercise is waving a hand at the camera at the photoshoot....
So ... there is never a free lunch :) but at least this is decent enough, there is some content, positive actions, and comedy, and the people are NORMAL people, not skeleton porcelain dolls.

And I am glad that the MiYong's soldier friend, who was ML is utterly violent hopeless meaningless One High School Heroes - I am pretty sure that is him - well I am glad that kiddo got a real man role with some amazing adult male actors and hopefully learned something.
Actors who did the JDD guy and the Hardware Store guys are *amazing actors. JDD Guy actor was sooooo smooth and natural... and such a complex personality... wow.
The Hardware Guy actor was such a personality... It was amazing to see th acting you can do with the attention in the eyes.
I really enjoyed watching the hardware guy, that was some amazing acting with eyes and face, a great comedian. I looked up other dramas and realized I did not recognize him - he was Shoe Park in Typhoon Family... ah another cameleon actor, i.e. a great actor, diferent in every role!

Lady actors didnt get to shine too much bc their roles were too simple, to let the men whine. That was not cool

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A great way to destress

I aw this in Korean on https://moviekhhd.biz/watch?id=9230 I dont speak Korean but I understood .. the scenes of her very male job and her dance outlet... I lived it myself :) so I can relate!!!!

Someone from India said they watched in on Hitv Android...

as a dancer with plenty of time spent in perfectionist environments, I am THRILLED to see this plot LOL it sounds fun!

I have not watched the entire movie, only the trailer, and it looks amazing! And very very realistic!!!!

This women is middle aged and of lesser athletic ability, so flamenco is PERFECT for her...
She too needs to escape into right brain creativity and expressiveness....
This story happened to me too but not with flamenco LOL Flamenco is a GREAT choice for the movie!!!!

Esp since flamenco is soooooo over the top dramatic, FLASHY, and soapy LOL this is a riot :)

and very plausible bc flamenco has lots of middle aged dancers, it is not a youngster thing for fun...
flamenco is very serious, and although flirty, not lewd, it is more about asserting personal power, in a very flashy and dramatic way - "you must notice me!!!!" and it is mostly solo but you can dance in a group too or even have a partner, and it has amazing complicated steps and music, even Africans appreciate it,

Flamenco has RHYTHM and music and stomping steps... it is perfect for emoting and breaking out - any time you want - it is a solo dance.... and doesnt require jumping or lots of space, and it has no sexy moves so nobody will be alarmed to see you dance in public ...

so you can dance it in the bathroom if you want... ! you can dance it on the street, bearfoot on the grass, in the middle of public areas, ..... anywhere.... and it is relatively easy to do....

and flamenco has lots of time expressing grief and sorrow and loss and pain and hurt and dancing it out .... stomping it all out....

and lamenco is quite easy to dance, it is NOT an athletic dance... there is more technique and attitude... and it doesnt require any expensive stuff except shoes... the skirt, the top, the shawl, you can wear on the street..... the dance itself requires just a tiny bit of space so you can dance it in your cramped tiny apartment...

the music and lively and EMOTIONAL and the dance moves are EMOTIONAL, you get to express EMOTION as much as you can - totally go over the top...

so it makes perfect sense that this woman took up to flamenco

GOOD CHOICE!!!!
If she picked Latin like salsa, ballroom or tango -- which all require male partners and are overly sexualized; or belly dance - which is solo but in a room with just other women - those dances are easy to do and would fit her fitness level and she COULD realistically dance it - but then we would call her ranchy lewd and the plot of this drama would suffer....
,
if she picked jazz or swing or soemthing more lively like that then it would be unrealistically aerobic and athletic for a middle aged woman starting from zero....

If she picked zumba at the local community center or senior center LOL then it would be too adjuma lackluster.....

If she picked something very cultural, like hula or Tahitian dance or African dance then it would introduce a whole new layer of dealing with that foreign culture and tradition..

lamenco is often danced as a universal dance, many total strangers teach it as totally unrelated to the culture, solely as "exercise" ... so...... it is PERFECT for the drama

FLAMENCO WAS A PERFECT DANCE CHOICE! wow I am impressed :)

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Wonderful uplifting inspirational story; true friendship of women; some sexism

I have mixed feelings about this drama after all. At first, I loved it. Then, it got too sexist for my taste. Then it got very deep and insightful. ANd then it got super idealisitcally rosey... So...

. It is not perfect ... Quite often - but not nearly as much in many other asian dramas - FL is shown as clumzy clutz naive and does not communicate... but at least it is less than in most other asian dramas.... FL has some common sense. 2FL is shown as a typical kdrama female, totally at the 6-yr old level... until the very very end.... and even then.... FL is not a very intelligent .... she is not a common sense and capable woman... She tries... from her position of poverty, inadequate upbringing, insecurity, and LACK of social skills, thinking skills, physical skills, common sense, and connections....

So I feel pity for Korean women to be portrayed still in ways that show blatant sexism. At least there is some progress and this drama shows it.
There are very deep insightful moments in this drama and it is overall very inspirational, taking us from the bleak sexist corporate situation today to a better future.
SO LET US GO WITH THAT....

I didnt watch it while it was airing bc the writeup made me think it was about some teenagers starting up and that it was too fluffy :(
My loss...

The drama is super cute in many ways. In some ways it made me cringe bc of clutzy loser female leads... and in some ways, it was very deeply insighghtful as "self help" advice for women who want to become more independent, happy and fullfilled and standing on their two feet.

A very valuable thing was to see women helping other women and being true friends. That is rare for women, since women are conditioned to fight for attention, status and MEN who will bring then that status and presitige and privileges. "A woman is nothing without a man" forces women to fight for male attention and it gets really really ugly in real life...
And in this drama, there is ONE snake like that. That was great, the snake is 10000% realistic ....

The FL was the FL in Potato Lab. but this drama is not mostly mindless stupid stuff like Potato Lab. FL in this drama is still somewhat clumzy and stupid though... but not as much as in Potato Lab. Episodes 9-11 are quite stupid, for most part... hiding her dating, etc... Especially when FL does not communicate about the sociopath bully.... That is UTTERLY DUMB.

It is not funny to see an adult woman so clumzy and stupid, like ... pushing a cart uphil with her friend on it and then letting go of handle and letting her friend roll downhill - and DIE. Seeing mindless stuff like that is NOT cute. It is utterly DUMB and horrifying. Qualifies FL for a psych ward for being mentally disabled. And for some kind of award for being physically disabled, not able to move without tripping and breaking something...

Luckily that kind of stuff does not happen all the time in this drama :) FL still has some common sense and more on her feet. ANd still very cute and pretty and charming :) She is a great actress. Well for this kind of role though :) Potato Lab and this are same acting :)

The plot is overall just ... uplifting
Very realistic work situations...

and a wonderful true mature friendship between 3 women

The ending is ... hm... I would want to see another 1 yr out... how did she work it out with a singer who works mostly in the West.... and makes drunk mistakes with fans... with his good looks and veins popping in his forearms and his lovely dovey love songs.... and fans sending flowers etc. Musicans are known for promiscuity... So .. how did this story go ... ? She was seen in Korea afterward, so what happened.... ML was a little overly goody goody LOL it is very rare to find a man - young or old - who will be that dedicated...

So the story is a little bit of fantasy, to think that a woman can get all that attention and totally dedicated guy even if she keeps pushing him away, even though there is NO communication or very little at best. etc.

Mr. Oh story is also a little bit of fantasy :) esp the way that "little 6 yr old girl" was ... Doting on her for a year and a few before that with Wei Lin... ?

So I take this drama as a little bit of hollywood, a little bit too rosey and WHAT YOU WISH HAPPENED

but it is ok, it is a good start in the right direction

THe thing is not to overdo the fantasy and thus make it seem like something bittersweet and actually feeling hopeless because it IS a fairy tale :) All Hollywood leaves that taste - you feel like you were drunk or something, dreaming about something totally unreachable bc everything happens by "luck" and without real effort, it is clearly a mind-fogging brainswashing lull-to-sleep addictive material

There SHOULD BE dramas that talk about solving problems for real.

Many kdramas have at least some of that flavor and that is why they are so popular
But if they become too... roesy cheesy soapy then.... it is not worth watching

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Soapy soap trash drama, tour of dark side of Korean culture, and a GREAT fashion show

Super DUMB doormat weak FL and very cold cruel controlling manipulative cement ML.
THIS DRAMA IS A WASTE OF TIME. UNLESS YOU WANT TO WATCH A GREAT FASHION AND FURNITURE SHOW, and even then, the ratio of time at the fashion show is not worth it. I fast forwarded through 15 episodes. THIS DRAMA IS SOAPY SOAP ***** T R A S H *****

This drama is a fantastic FASHION AND FURNITURE SHOW and that is why I give it 2 stars. ML clothes and FL clothes are super cool!!! and even some others wore some amazing outfits too. A hanbok parade....

If it werent for the fashion show, this is ZERO stars drama. ....

it terms of content and acting, it is totall bologney, a 100% copy of Boys over Flowers... BUT WORSE bc this is also a copy of Playful Kiss, same FL actress, in role of a super dumb clumzy chick who chases the mean smart popular
rich boy who keeps rejecting her and abusing her...
So this drama is a lot worse than BOF, at least the FL in BioF was very smart and capable and was not chasing the ML

Abusive psychotic cruel male and a submissive STUPID pathetic female, who keeps chasing him even though he abuses her verbally, emotionally, physically, and even CHEATS in her, ... dumb FL,

FL actress who cannot even act, just puckers her lios and opens them and looks anxious and surprised... so many female actresses are forced to act like this and it is UTTERLY DISGUSTINGLY BORING

Yeah FL is cute but she is supposed to be 19 and there she is on super high heels and mini skirts, AT HOME...

PATHETIC STUPIDITY

and PATHETIC PATRIARCHY - the princess gets kicked out literally the next day after she walks around with some guy, meanwhile the prince is photographed kissing his ex and taking her around and then meeting her and talking with her, MANY times.... phew disgusting. That dude kept taking her on dates and flirting with her and meeting up with her AND IF SHE HAS GRABBED HIM, HE WOULD GO. The only reason why it stopped is bc his mother sent her overseas. The prince would have kept a side mistress forever as a "friend" he can go on dates any time he wants.

ML was a super coward, so weak, egoistical, selfish, etc

and FL was written as an enabler, as a doormat who was making him even bigger snowflake

and that impossible magical story used for brainwashing - IF YOU CATER TO YOUR COLD CRUEL MAN FOREVER, ONE DAY HE WILL BECOME NICE TO YOU. WHat trash. The Queen tried to love His Majesty for 20 years to find out he loved another woman that entire time.

This snowlake Prince was so super rude crude abusive and never spoke the truth and always got out, he deserves .... something drastic to shake his pants and get him standing up straight....

Overall, a super disgusting drama, A TOUR OF KOREAN DARK SIDE
this is totally opressive stiffling limiting and overall pathetic piece of "art" aka BRAINWASHING into some super disgusting societal prejudices

Whoever gave it that 7.8 rating is a destructive force
There is absolutely nothing positive about this drama, it teaches sheer bologney

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A well done and rather heartwarming "in the light" watch

MDS is *fantastic* in this role, he seems sooooo real, wow acting! and KYK is as complex and fun as can be. I never saw him doing this blatantly flirty scenes yet. It was cute. KYK is definitely my #1 Korean actor, and on my list of top actors globally. I have not seen any role from him that was disappointing. They are all complex and have deep meanings and messages, and many are avant garde out of box and very thoughtful. I am very impressed with his art.

I really see no cliches in this movie... it is just a story .... i dont see tropes and tricks... it is just a story, it is what it is...

and it has comedy... LOTS lmao when MDS fainted when he met KYK, I was rolling with laughter ... there are so many comedic moments, it is hilarious ...
and crime thriller parts... and melodrama... and sad parts... and heartwarming parts... and yeah KYK got a complex role :) MDS is amazing in this drama, soooooo nailed it!!!!!

I am glad I watched this.

And I did research. It *is* possible that an adult gives a heart to a child, if for some reason the child has enough space in their chest cavity. It is possible that the child is large enough, or had an enlarged heart, etc. So yeah it IS possible

As for cliches ... what exactly are cliches?? a young policeman being duped by his sombe???? HEY THAT PLOT IS IN HEAVY CRIME THRILLERS TOO!!!!! HOW CAN IT BE CLICHE???
A young policeman, a simple guy in a small town where nothing really happens, very righteous and keen to work, all bubbly and freshly in love - btw such a great and fresh role of KYK - recently his roles are more and more and more complex...

DID anyone really expect this young bubbly policeman in love to be a suspicious person who expects the worst from his buddy??? and the police chief???? ... ? I wouldnt ... :)

PS - My original thoughts:
Ma Dong Seok - who is for fluffy roles/dramas/movies - with Kim Young Kwang - who is for complex deep roles/dramas/movies.... wth??? what comes out at the end... ? a rare fluffy piece by KYK??? I would never watch anything with MDS - lesson learned the hard way with kdrama The Twelve - but I might take a peek bc KYK is my the favorite kdrama actor. So I wanna see what he films when he wants some extra cash or just wants an easy fluff fun thing to film. This is my prejudicial opinion before watching this movie at all. Bc so far I havent found one role of KYK that was meaningless or shallow or simple. Maybe this movie will be the first :(

Oh boy it is so wonderful I was wrong!!!!

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Makjang fluff, equivalent to drinking a bottle of alcohol or something

The drama is a decent and showy makjang until about ep 7.
The 2 Joseon women tried to be wise from their heart and it was very nice -
but then it started falling apart in ep 7 when I got tired of their whispering voices and ALWAYS ANXIOUS SUFFERING FACES... ALWAYS IN FEAR.... always lying... more and more lying...

AND NO CHARACTER GROWTH IN ANY DRAMA CHARACTER****

SO IT WAS ALL SNAKE OIL, SMOKE AND MIRRORS, TOTALLY FAKE!!!!

I wrote several long posts in the Discussion for this drama on MDL, so you can read that.
I FINISHED THE DRAMA FEELING FURIOUS THAT I WASTED TIME WATCHING THIS TRASH. It was a great study of how cheesy writers bait the audience and how to pay attention to what you are watching and what the red flags are. .

The drama left me absolutely FURIOUS. I was watching and things were ok until I figured out what I was watching - utmost sexism and women as powerless slaves, scared for their life,

Koreans brainwashing that female lying, silence, chronic anxiety and suffering, and "whispering voices" and "demure elegant" conduct is something desirable.
HECK NO. It comes from women being scared for their life and well being, as slaves with NO power or rights; and the brainwashing that they have to sacrifice themselves - for example that a woman must not eat much. KOREAN SOCIETY TREATED - AND STILL TREATS - WOMEN LIKE SLAVES, SO BADLY IT IS DISGUSTING

Practically every culture in the world mistreats women, some more some less, but it is THERE
It was just disgusting to see how Asia did it and STILL DOES IT that is why we get those anxious lying never talking stupid women in 2026 dramas about year 2026.

That gotta STOP we need good female role models. -


So b y ep 7, I started to doubt what I was watching, and then in ep 15, 16 I got very angry at what I was seeing esp in older Joseon woman.

What the drama calls demure, elegant, feminine, considerate, pleasing, trustworthy is actually a POWERLESS FEMALE SLAVE who does not dare say anything that could piss off anyone, so SHE LIES, KEEPS SILENCE, DESTROYS, just to keep her as@ safe.
IT IS DISGUSTING ADVERTISEMENT OF PATRIARCHY

Durian's Affair was not sugarcoating LGBT+ and made this character super selfish and ordinary, "same as usual selfish", just with that orientation.
Also the drama made fun of Catholicism and CHristian "lamb", of Western Food, or plastic surgery for actors, and many many other societal issues.

There is no character growth in this drama, WHATSOEVER, the drama says it is for "ordinary ppl to temporarily forget their rough life" and indeed that is what this drama is, lots of juicy shocking and gossip scenes, lots of meaningless dialogues, ...

It has karmic lessons, ok... and advertises Buddhism... ok ..
but other than that... it is pretty much useless for real life, it is mostly fluff

FOR STARTERS, UP UNTIL ABOUT EP 7:
2 Joseon ladies embody just plain old honesty politeness and kindness that goes waaaay beyond any rotten old moldy sexist Confucianism.... Indeed! So thank you for that thoughtful review.

This drama indeed is a pioneering piece of work, and the script is actually very good and effective, acting is stellar, and of course - the music totally adds to the drama, pun intended. I am glad I watched it.

For the record: I got to this drama by accident, bc there are no dramas for 2 weeks bc of some sports event. So someone recommended the "classic" daily Princess Aurora, so I researched it, found the review on Dramabeans, and watched ep 148, 150 to see for myself. So I got curious about the writer and read her bio here on MDL. Definitely a very contraversial person... who makes effective makjangs. The secrets are great dramatic music, juicy "real life" stereotypes and gossips, ... and even deeper. I already noticed in the 2 episodes of the Princess that many societal issues were addressed, and the overall topic of this drama is the good old "being driven by hormones in spite of all visible red flags."

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A very effective soapy soap

I watched ep 149 and 150 in year 2026 bc there is no kdramas for 2 weeks due to some sports events, so someone in a current daily recommended this drama - and so I found that this is one of those "famous" classic dailies. So I was curious about it and did some research. Yeah this was a serious makjang, on stage and off stage...

I found out that the drama was super popular back then in 2013 AND ALSO had major scandals with actors being fired abruptly - the script writer Im Sung Han just killed them in the drama - but she kept her niece and expanded her niece's role lmao The drama is also "negatively famous" for plots and scenes that are immoral and contraversial. Writer Im Sung Han is a shady character.
https://dramabeans.com/2013/12/when-dramas-go-crazy-aurora-princess-a-case-study/

So just to recap: A very handsome bad boy is under the slipper of his crazy - literally crazy!!!! - 3 sisters.
Ignoring this fact, princess Aurora goes for the bad boy, gets burned, and then goes to the good boy - then back to the bad boy - then forward to the good boy .. LMAO how many times? - but then... she brings in the bad boy and all 3 live together in a polyandry (one woman and 2 men) ? Some ppl say the baby is good boy's, some say it is bad boy's - what is correct?

I tried to determine for myself, and watched ep 149, 150, and apparently, the baby is good boy's.
It is very clear that the bad boy and his sisters are totally delulu and his 2 oldest sisters are literally mentally ill, and he too :) He doesn't even know it.. The talk he had with his older sister as a ghost in ep 149 was soooo .... delulu, clearly, both are mentally off. What he was telling her that he never gave her enough and she deserved more was .... wow! batsh.t crazy. And his older sister is clearly in need of medical treatment for mental illness, obsession, psychopathy, etc etc etc Wow character. The ponytail sister too.... and the last sister has some trace of functionality, she is not straight batsh.t crazy. Just ... a little bit toxic :)

The drama is successful bc the music is very ... tense and dramatic and obvious .... and also acting is very good, ppl look good, and the script has many "real life juicy gossip" and lines...

Overall, the drama looks totally like real life, plus more drama and dramatic music, and with good looking ppl for most part lmao Both MLs are handsome . FL is .. not... but her look totally fits the role. She is perfect. The sisters are also good looking for their age., and all younger characters are good looking.

I found the drama online in go play dot su

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Well done drama that exposes the underlying deep issues

Well done. BL dramas are too often just pornographic and/or s.x centered, and this GL drama definitely brought the issues and deals with the deeper layers. It seems very realistic. I am straight so I can only guess. However, I am also a minority, so I know from personal experience what persecution looks like

This drama brings attention to one group of people being bullied. However the principle of it applies to all bullying anywhere.

The reality of the situation is that the exact scenario of this drama happens in life all the time bc there is always some morons defending their turf and dissing others who dont fit into THEIR picture. It is the plight of human life on earth...

The reality of the situation is that this exact scenario is the classic "chaebol family does not want a poor in-law" lmao I am now half joking

The reality of the situation is that this happens to any minority anywhere. It is still happening to all women, all people with darker skin color, all Native ppl anywhere, all ppl with disability, all ppl who are poor, who are the "wrong" religion, "wrong" social/ethnic group, etc - BUT EACH SMALL GROUP TALKS ABOUT ITSELF AND NOBODY TALKS ABOUT **** OTHER ***** SMALL GROUPS AND BIG PATTERNS

Like, the gender inequality is insane globally, but nobody addresses it really and we still watch dramas with cute oppas acting as sugar daddies to ditz immature women.

LGBT+ community got somewhere with their issues bc they united all the letters, but still there are tons of BL dramas and practically no GL... and this minority community could care less about other minorities.

So various minority communities act as abusers to each other, bc they are selfish too just like everyone else, and everyone is just ELBOWING FORWARD.

And the reality is that what is shown in this drama happens to EVERYONE - even if you are straight, white enough, male, with the right money, religion, car, etc.. you might get bullied in office politics, in your marriage, with friends, etc... Like Dream Life of Mr. Kim...

Ppl just do this to each other. Like pack animals establishing pecking order and hierarchy. We humans are no different than monkeys.

So as soon as ppl find ONE "weakness" in you, they will harass you - and then exploit you. That is why this is done. When you are kicked out, there is more resources for them. The fact that women are paid less and work more, means that men automatically have more. If you steal land and riches from your "less worthy" neighbors or countries, it is ok - for YOU.

So yeah this drama brings attention to one minority group being bullied like that.

But this same exact principle is behind all colonization, wars, exploitation, any bullying in any sense anywhere.

For example, In the USA, there is an EPIDEMIC of stealing homes from (single) women, elderly, and disabled, ppl who had enough money to buy a home but not enough clout in the society to care about them being kicked to the curb, and not enough money and connections to hire lawyers and get the media or someone to act to protect them.
So some attorneys will sue you for bogus fake stuff, then the judge will condemn you and then take your home.

So this drama is a LOT bigger than just LGBT+ issues, the core issue here is bullying and exploitation of anyone who is labeled "weaker" by the society.

In this case, ppl can take FL's spot in the broadcasting club, push her lower on the grade ranking list so they automatically go higher, prevent her from getting good jobs, her sister saves herself from social stigma, etc
and one day some poor man might get stuck unknowingly marrying a lesbian, and she might get stuck living a life of lies.

The whole situation of handling things on Earth in the human society is really really really messed up. A lot of effort is needed to clean up this toxic elbowing forward over the heads of others.

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Absolute masterpiece - hilarious, deep, tragic, profound HEALING - true kmovie/kdrama

OMG MOVIE!!!!!! wow. True mastery of Korean video. WOW!!!! It is hilariously funny, it is rowdy fun and daily life yet deep profound topics and amazing friendships.... And it is a lot more than that.... It is absolutely masterfully told and filmed HEALING.
MDL description for this movie is cheesy inadequate and very deceptive :) The movie is a psychological thriller that uses lots of comedy .... and more... .... . But I cannot spoil anything for you. You have to watch it from beginning to the end, ALL THE WAY TO THE END, even past the credits and super hilarious cut scenes.

WOW. THe movie blew my mind
Amazing comedy
Really heartbreaking tragedy
and AMAZING HEALING

t is HEARTWARMING AND HEARTBREAKING AT THE SAME TIME
but leaves the healing aftertaste
and it shows HEALING on many levels

The movie is hilariously funny and also tragic, and overall it documents a HEALING PROCESS.
Seemingly so simple but it catches you and thugs on your brain and your heart and changes your life. Extremely PROFOUND DEEP.
WOW MOVIE!!!!! Heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time. Leaves you fully aware of life's tragedies and appreciation for the healing process and overcoming and transforming.

I wasnt aware that my fav kactor was in this movie, so I am watching it 1 yr late, but omg am I glad I watched it!!!!! OMG MOVIE!!!!!

The cast is all super great experienced actors on fire, they were really having fun horsing around, but also... showing some very deep complex scenes, super highly emotional scenes

I AM SO GLAD I WATCHED THIS MOVIE!!! i would have never watched it based on MDL description. The only reason why I watched is Kim Young Kwang, and he delivered as usual, all his artworks are high quality. He has now officialy become my fav kactor. He picks only very interesting projects.

This is a masterpiece movie with everything that we love kdramas/kmovies for - it is warm, fun, humorous, twisty, deep yet light, shows personal and community growth, shows deep complex tragic things with compassion and in a way that makes you think and change your life. It is sophisticated, it is humane and mundane and totally profound and HEALING. WOW.

WOW S KOREA!!!!! what is in the air and the water there - and in all those skin creams and good food - that makes S Koreans so creative and so wickedly funny in a very deep compassionate warm and POSITIVE HEALING way. We need to learn from them.

ACTORS:
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I would have NEVER watched this movie bc the description is totally not of interest to me... but I watched it bc I wanted to see Kim Young-Kwang's work. After watching Pinnochio as my first kdrama in 2019 bc I found it on Internet by chance and at that time I had no idea what kdramas were .... but I remember his role... bc he ha presence and acts well... then I wathed by chance On Her Wedding Day - and did not recognize the guy from Pinnociop lol but that movie stood in my mind, it is excellent... then Haunted Palace Imugi was so memorable... then Walking on Thin Ice... so complex and profound... creative .... and by then... I realized that I need to check the other movies / dramas this actor made bc they are all extraordinary, creative, profound art pieces with very complex and profound messages. I watched a few more movies from his MDL list - Mssion Possible and Year End Medley ... ... and learned that Kim Young-kwang is my fav kactor and one of my fav actors overall. Every role he is in is complex and thoughtful and life changing learning experience - so I watched this movie.
And I will surely watch all on his list.

Another perk from this movie is that Tastefully Yours ML is here too, and he too is a fantastic comedian
and the dude from Agent Kim got a good role in here too, it fits him soooo well to be Korean ambassador lmao who is pissed off lmao

There is only one female character and the actress is great but the character is also ... a ditz... unfortunately :) and there is a female villain. The sexism is still there. That's my only criticism of this movie.

It seems absurd at times but it really is not. Real life does look like that.

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Masterpiece satire of adult and teen life, really fun

This kdrama is super sophisticated. First, the filming, the music, the acting, the scenes, everything is done with amazing creativity, precision and quality. It is a masterpiece. And it is NOT available on Netflix.

Essentially, this kdrama is an exaggerated and metaphorical view of adult and teen life, and requires ability to laugh at oneself, as it shows us what we are really like. The dialogues and scenes are profound.

It is only 8 episodes bc it moves at a fast snowballing pattern and intense suspense, so upholding that for more than 8 episodes would be difficult if not impossible.

Mad Concrete Dreams is not exactly like this. It is also a fast moving snowballing disaster but ... it is based on greed, and not so loving as this drama :)

This drama shows "decent families" that protect each other and care for each other, and just have a few problems :) You get to see the snowballing chaos caused by a spoiled brat teenager, who is lying to their caring - and faulty - parents :)

The theme of this kdrama is realistic family life, with all its crises and patches... No matter what happened, each family ends up as a strong unit.

So this kdrama requires audience that has life experience and ability to think and laugh at itself and life. Ppl who do not have that, will likely give this drama a low rating

Imo this is 9 or 9.5/10 drama - and not a 10 only because it is without meaningful SOLUTIONS. It is only "fun," only a satire, it lacks the deep lasting profound life-lesson messages/solutions required for a 10 star drama.

For solutions, we need another drama from this crew :)

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I would require all video majors to study this drama :)
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The filming, the acting, the music and the plot / dialogue all together make an AMAZING whole. It would take a lot to properly analyze every scene, bc they are full of information.

The filming of it is genius - maybe they are copying someone else but I have not seen anything like this one before, and actors are the key to this

Somehow the camera person was able to capture actors from REALLY funky angles, like ActorDad Lim Jae-hong "dancing around" ie frantically moving to and fro in a public restroom. in dire anxiety and sheer PANIC; trying to check every stall, making sure there is nobody in the bathroom so that he can make a private call, and all shown as his silhouette from a low angle, looking up and seeing his legs moving around with bent knees and head frantically turning. eyes popping out - it was HILARIOUS. You get to see scenes like that only in a cartoon...

Or his cheating partner, reading some nasty divorce papers, at a table under a crystal chandelier - obviously wealthy woman in a wealthy house but dealing with dirty stuff and a nasty ex husband, father of their daughter - and all of it filmed THROUGH the shiny sparkly crystal chandelier - the contrast between the luxurious shiny lights and the darkness on that paper and on the woman's face and in the rest of the house was extremely satirical and tragicomic dark humor. Really carried the point across.

The scenes of Actor's Wife the Influencer being hit on by .... someone lmao I am not going to spoil it - that was slimy educational WOW! moments... and then them going to his apartment..... was HILARIOUS beyond hilarious lmao - I cannot spoil it for you, sorry, it is too good to be spoiled. You will be grateful later that I did not spoil it :)

The story/music/camera/acting all together is totally WICKED, wickedly funny, totally diabolical satire, really showing it as is.

Ah for those of you who are afraid of the word AFFAIR - well most adults experienced themselves cheating on their partner, being cheated on by their partner, and/or seriously impacted by cheating of someone close them like a parent or boss, ...... And many ppl on this earth live in cultures that endorse cheating...
Cheating is like a required rites of passage for adults :( unfortunately .................... every adult has to learn to deal with it. This kdrama shows us what it is really like.

For anyone who is afraid of seeing affairs, dont worry, the message is DON'T DO IT :)
There is 1 kinda steamy scene and 0,5 hinting at steamy scene ... and that's it - and it kinda makes fun of the affair - and is used to show how and why married ppl get to that point of hunger.

Those of you who watch romcoms with pretty oppas taking a shower, you have seen a lot more. So .. dont snivel about this drama.

And for those of you who are afraid of word LGBT+ there is a pair of teenage girls with matching rings, one quick peck on the cheek for 1 millisecond; and 1 quick holding of hands for 1 millisecond. If THAT offends you, then there is no hope for ya.

The drama is just done SO WELL. I hope you enjoy it!!!!!

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