Littletad

Honestly, there are a lot of comparisons between this and Brewing Love, and they would be correct to do that. But this drama is better. Maybe not way better, but still an enjoyable viewing. My problem with it, though, is that, while it tries to do something new, it kinda reverts back to old tropes of the past decade that we're long past tired of. For instance, the first kiss takes 9 episodes. NINE. I mean, there is a drunken peck on the lips, but that really doesn't count.

My biggest problem is this: there is an antagonist in the show, despite some people saying there isn't. Here's what happened. A researcher is pretty much living a normal life. Her boyfriend has finally moved up the chain at work. She thinks they'll be married someday, or at least expects it. She trusts him blindly. However, even though they don't show it properly, he gets a chance to marry a chairwoman's daughter. He secretly dates her while still dating the female lead. Eventually, he dumps her right before his wedding. In fact he dumps her by showing her his wedding invitation. Pretty brutal, right? But it doesn't end there. His new family-in-law found out about his relationship, and they decided to tarnish and belittle the FL until she is kicked out of the company. In short, he ruined her life so that he could have his own rich and well-settled life. Sounds like a really crappy person right? But eventually the show kinda leniently glosses over what he did and turns him more human. Not by actual actions that show his remorse. I mean, we do see his regret, and he even confronts those he hurt and says he regrets his actions. He doesn't actually apologize, he just says he regrets it. But having the female lead forgive him and also attend his father's funeral just seemed so annoying to me. I'm not a forgiving person, and that's alright. Some people might call that a flaw. But there are some things beyond forgiving. I didn't want the FL to stomp on her old flame and get revenge, I wanted her to find her own happiness and move on with the ML. Instead, the show really tries to make us just forget the worst and move on, with everyone happy in some way. I felt this was the biggest flaw of the show. It didn't feel human or realistic to me. Don't humanize the people who left you to die or cared less where they left you.

Besides all that, the show itself was also kind of boring. I never once looked forward to the next episode. Kinda chugging myself along. Maybe because the ML was dense and calculating. He saw dating as a business decision, which made no sense to me. He's an orphan. So human emotions should be important to him, even if they are or were foreign. Sadly, we also never really get a history look at his former life. He never got to see his real parents or discover what kind of pain he must of have been in to live a life of such isolation. We also never understand or are properly told what his relationship to the chairwoman is. Everyone in the highest rank of the company adores him. But why? What's the connection? In the last episode, we didn't get answers. This was a missed opportunity.

For what it's worth, though, the FL is amazing. She can be a bit annoying and her acting can be a mixed bag. But there are some scenes where she completely nails it, and they're the best parts of the show. But I never really felt the chemistry there. Mainly because of how calculating and emotionless they decided to make the ML. Even so, I do think this show is worth watching, at least once, and skimming through if you find it hard to watch.