Littletad

Completely forgetful show

God, I wanted to love this show. The ML and FL are some of my favorite actors. "From now on Showtime" is my most rewatched show, ever. The usual magic they both bring to their projects wasn't here, though. This drama surprisingly doesn't suffer from bad tropes,. Rather, it has horrible direction and writing. I mean it, it truly seems to have junior-high-level writing. The worst part is that the translation is bad. And I mean bad. In one episode, there is a tragic accident involving a rescuer who loses his leg. Three different translations state that he DIES. So normally, this wouldn't be the show's fault, right? Well, to make it worse, the FL has a panic episode. She runs into the hospital lobby after being unable to save the patient's legs and collapses in front of the ML. He then picks her up. This gives the original translation an incentive to make the reader believe that she lost the patient. Why does this matter? Well, for one, this is the first show to truly show just how bad a messed-up translation can ruin your experience and the entire story itself. So, when you have writing and direction that also confuses the audience, it's an absolute disaster.

Another reviewer said that so many things seem unrealistic in the show. And I honestly agree. There are many examples. For one, the fact that the ML decides to join the rescuer team despite having his job of acquiring assets for his CEO, either land or property. While his job title is never stated, he's called the director. Basically, his job is like Edward Lewis from Pretty Woman. Naturally, the writers think it makes sense to turn him into a sort of fireman so he can better access the land he wants his company to acquire. The problem is how unrealistic it all seems and plays out. How about the romance? The FL lead literally just says, "Let's date." Simply because they end up in a common board house, stuck together. Which, btw, isn't revealed to be part of the hospital director's property 3-4 episodes after they both start living there. And because of the writing, nothing feels natural. There is no chemistry. Physically, they are a match. But the writing is bad, I just couldn't see them together. And because of the bad translation, in one episode, he says, "How could you not fall for someone as perfect as me?" Now, something like this has been done before. Like, for instance, "What's wrong with secretary Kim?" The problem, though, is that when they try to make ML's like this, it's usually comical. They aren't really that insufferable. But ML in THIS show is dead serious about how perfect he finds himself. He then starts obsessing over who she spends her time with and her ex, among many other things. It isn't THAT bad, but from what we know of the FL, it seems extremely unlikely she would have fallen for him. In reality, she would have despised him and moved out of the community house. Speaking of the Fl, she's a surgeon. Something that either got lost in the translation, or the show forgot what her title actually is. During the show, she acts more like a PCP than a surgeon. She never seems to worry about her hands. She also walked out and ran from a patient when she was first doing rounds as a psychiatrist. Makes no sense, right? I'll just stop here.

To summarize, this show is a master class in what happens when you combine bad writing and horrible translation. Honestly, if you truly want to watch this show, I'd suggest disabling subtitles and just making up your own dialogue. You'll have a better time at least trying to make up a story rather than reading whatever the writers intended. Otherwise, avoid like the plague.

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The most incredibly forgetful "Cinderella" story

I'm absolutely amazed the actors chose to participate in this project. The writing is just so juvenile and cringeworthy, as if they hired someone straight out of junior high. Even a high schooler could write something at least more compelling. There's also zero chemistry between the leads, and again, zero chemistry among their fictional characters. When they finally get together and she calls him "honey", I cringed at the name. They acted and seemed more like brother and sister than an actual couple. Only in the flashbacks do they seem normal and sane. I understand the ML is young, but I'm just astonished he's getting lead roles when his acting skills are still in their infancy. I will say this, though, he is damn tall and handsome. But that's about it.

To be fair, though, out of all the dramas I've watched, ironically, this one has the best two lines put together. "Gosh, I thought I was a prince. Turns out, I'm the fairy." I legit cracked up at that delivery. I also loved the upbringing storyline, but they never explored that further. How did she manage to raise her brother alone when she was barely 13 or so when she escaped her father? How did she legally escape? None of these things are answered. Her little brother also had the best character growth, but we never again saw the consequences of his fight at school. It's like the writers shelved coherence for nonsequential plots. I honestly have no idea why the ML had an older brother. I admit his acting was miles better than the ML, but his character and his wife's character really weren't needed at all.

So is this the worst Cinderella drama? No, the story really just has the Cinderealla name in the title and nothing more. The drama plays it safe, far too safe, and requires zero input. At best, it's background noise or a drama where you can just shut your brain off with little to no expectations. Watch if you have absolutely nothing else to watch, if you must.

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Horrible direction, writing, and confusing segments take away from impecabble acting.

God, I wanted this drama to do better. I saw the ML on The Witch. And while that drama was even worse than this one, I instantly knew there was something special about the ML. His acting is just top tier. I really hope he finds a proper director and series to really establish himself as a leading star. From what I understand, he was a singer turned actor? Either way, he's the reason you'll be watching this show. The FL is also great, and you'll recognize her from her more recent breakout role in The Glory. There's also a little more well-known actress in a support role that will make most of you smile, too. But even these great actors can't fix the horrible directing and writing of the show. I'll keep it short.

There's a scene where the ML leaves a car in front of the police station where the FL works. The next morning, it's still there after they have an argument. But during a flashback she has with the prosecutor that very afternoon, the car is gone, despite the next future scene having it there. It really kills the immersion cause they went out of their way to include it, but forgot to keep it in an important scene. There are numerous scenes like this where they simply forget the coherent timeline of their own story. So that's just one example. Then there's the difference between the ML and the FL, too. They are both the same age, yet the FL was able to go two years dropping out of high school and then becoming a low-ranking police officer. Meanwhile, the ML is dumb as ever. In the show, there is a clear distinction between their intelligence, and the FL is portrayed as having nearly similar intellect as the high-ranking support colleagues, who are much older. It makes absolutely no sense. Then there's the "powers" bit. Even in the show's intro scenes, he's established as some sort of super "hero" who has experience with those said powers. In reality, his powers are extremely weak, and often they aren't really useful. Pointing more towards riddles that involve more riddles until they get a clear picture. Now, for one, I'm glad they didn't make him more powerful or all-knowing. That would have killed the purpose, but to be honest, it really feels like his power and his progression to use them are almost nonsensical. To make it worse, they establish in the show that the key to making his powers grow is to get closer to the FL lead. But they purposely keep withholding physical contact until the 7th or 8th episode. Later, they almost drop this plot device entirely. In fact, by episode 14, the FL disregards one of his flashbacks because they didn't like the outcome. WTF??? Next is the authority figures. One old man simply sits at a desk in that police station I mentioned, and all he does is pluck his nose hairs. Later, he gets tasks with being the head of ALL investigations involved with the main cases. He becomes immediately "important" overnight and, of course, he disregards the ML's powers. The show just doesn't know how to have proper sequences, structures, and likeable characters. Speaking of likeable characters, they literally kill the most fan favorite character, the female detective. After her death, the show loses its identity.

There are about half a dozen or so more examples of what went wrong with this show, but I'll just leave it here. The show isn't terrible. It's just badly directed. Had it had better direction, the writing would have been a small hindrance to the overall quality. Anyhoo, I do think the show is worth watching if you enjoy the actors. Just keep your expectations in check.

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One of the most boring k dramas with an incredible cast

Most of you will have tuned in to this show because of the FL. She's still Weightlifting Fairy in our eyes. Sadly, you shouldn't expect the same kind of magic with this drama. There is virtually no chemistry between the leads. Absolutely none. There are numerous support roles and so many of them find love near the end of the series. Every single one of them, despite some of them being boring themselves or having limited screen time, still manage to have more synergy than the leads. It's bizarre, especially because I'm a huge fan of the FL.

That aside, that isn't even the biggest problem. It's the format of the story. Rather than simple coherency, the plot revolves around a love/hate relationship between the leads that is told through different timelines. The problem is that the episodes and scenes jump between different time stamps with very little acknowledgment that it does so. Only when they did a flashback to their time in the same university did I really understand what was going on. Other times I couldn't for the life of me tell if it was the present or the past. I don't know why the writers chose this format. Never confuse your audience. I thought maybe the subtitles weren't working so I watched some episodes again on a different network and it was virtually the same. So the episodes never let you know when they dive into the past. Even if you watch closely, it's really hard to understand just what the heck is going on.

The problems continue when they change the timeline of events. The ML goes on a trip to Africa for a year in the beginning. He's been away from the woman he loves (even though he treats her like dirt) for a long time. In a flashback scene, we find that it's because he was arguing with his head of PR, who just so happens to walk in front of the press while doing so. And the head of the PR is none other than the female lead. Several episodes later, they literally retcon the Africa trip explanation and reveal that it was actually because of his close friend who committed suicide. This person was also a rising actor who was extremely integral to the characters, but the backstory is so flimsy that it's hard to feel the sentiment we're expected to feel.

Not done confusing the audience, another scene happens that explains that all three of them were close. Both the leads and this mysterious actor who passed away early on. Why does that matter? Because based on the timeline of events, the male lead had actually been avoiding the FL lead throughout this timeline. He admits it himself and saying that he never really had friends or dated, so being mean to her was the only reasonable reaction at the time. Again this doesn't explain how the three of them were so close in that scene. So if you're as confused as I am reading this review, imagine watching it.

I'll try to be positive though. The show does explore the harmful effects of the media and the expectations of celebrities living careful lives. They touch on hateful fans, prejudice, and harassment. All of that is fine, but it's a very cookie-cutter version of what could and does happen in reality. It plays it safe, and the show suffers losing what could have been a wonderful topic that addresses the serious matters and the harmful effects on Korean society.

In the end, the producers and the writers decided to avoid a serious drama. And we are left with a light-hearted comedy that never hits its stride. The last 4 episodes were exhausting to get through. And trust me, most of you will feel the same. But if you still see the FL as Weightlifting Fairy and you enjoy seeing her regardless, you might just find something worthwhile here. Sadly, you'd be better off watching almost anything else.

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What could have been.

I know i’m not familiar with Taiwanese dramas as I am with Korean, but bear with me as I felt they followed the same formula to a certain extent. Keep in mind that Autumns Concerto was released one year after Boys over Flowers. So it’s hard to gauge the impact it had on this series, if it had any at all. This is all before the “me too” era. To cut to the chase, this drama had so much freaking potential, but by the middle half, it goes completely bonkers.

There is so much to digest here, and there might be a few spoilers, but there was just so much wrong with this show. The main character forces himself on the female lead at least 4-5 times. So much is glossed over, as if it’s normal. There’s attempted kidnapping, murder, attempted rape, prostitution, and so much more. All of this seems normal, despite little consequence until we get to the 30th episode where things get more absurd.

The FL almost never expresses a full thought that bears emotion and weight with what she’s faced in life. She’s frail and timid, never allowing herself to say what’s on her mind. This starts to change, a little bit, but I kid you not, by the 29th episode. The formula every single character uses then, especially the FL, is to lie. And boy does everyone lie. Lies upon lies, upon withholds. We never get complete answers from the FL, no matter who asks, especially when it mattered. The solution is to keep lying while thereby creating more needless drama. During 2008, I think producers and writers felt that this kind of path gave the viewers an inclination to keep watching. This doesn’t work in the digital age and I don’t think it did much then either. If you watch only the first 10 episodes of this series, you could say it’s almost among the best. The brain tumor storyline was done insanely well, but it’s the only saving grace.

So many of the extra side characters are useless. The “best friend” male is an utter train wreck of a character. He has no money. No title. No completed education. Instead, he tries to solve real world problems with his fist and manly facial expressions. It’s almost a joke by the 29th episode. At one point a character says this exact line, “I don’t know how to explain how absurd all of this is.” A line used by the ML’s would be wife, who decided to keep a recovering amnesia patient in the dark so she could have her happy fake fiancé. By the time you reach that line, you realize how fitting it is to tie the whole series down.

If it weren’t video speed pro, I wouldn’t even had bothered.

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I'll keep it brief. Any show that tries to redeem a rapist is unworthy of being watched. Period.

The headline pretty much says it all. I feel so bad for the male and female leads. Despite crappy writing, there is something special between them. From what I understand, the writing team went through a transition halfway through filming. What we ended up getting was an even bigger mess. As an American, I can understand that the redemption process is different in every culture. However, rape and rapists, are universal subjects that aren't allowed legroom to overlook. The writing team tries its best to redeem the second male lead, which might be the worse written character I've seen in a decade. If you're an anti-feminist who believes in redemption no matter the sin, this might just be right up your alley though. Otherwise, avoid like the plague.

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One of the best C-dramas that falls just short of propelling their dramas to K-drama levels.

I’m just going to keep this short as I can. This is one of my top 3 C-dramas ever. My absolute favorite is lighter and princess. But I have to admit that China is still a long way from making its dramas on the same level as K-dramas. From the production, the storytelling, and even the acting itself. There are key differences, and most of them are in South Korea's favor. But once in a while, something like Forbidden Flower comes along. This is my second favorite ever, and a good indicator that C-dramas are approaching their own comfortable dominance in a saturated market.

The story is a little taboo, and I honestly thought it was going to be a problem. Sure, China and South Korea look at age differences in couples differently. Even grooming. But none of that is ever touched in a negative way here. The reason is because the FL pursues the ML based on her faith and judgment. There’s a natural progression that is explained as you watch. Time is different for her. She has an illness that will shorten her life. The moment she sees the ML, she knows what she wants. And how a couple pursues one another is incredibly important in any drama. This one is so amazing because of how natural it is. There is no grooming here, no taking advantage of. He does everything he can to lose her interest in him. He moves from his temporary home, closes/changes his business hours, and even walks in the opposite direction whenever he sees her. But still, she persists. Once he finally SEES her, he gives in. And he finds out that she’s been serious from the very start. It’s hard to explain in a review, but once you watch the progression, it’s so natural and believable that you appreciate the FL’s acting immensely.

But like I said, I’m going to keep it short. The beginning and the middle parts are simply incredible. As stated before, the female lead's acting chops are just on another level. Hell, even the ML can’t keep up in many aspects. But then it happens, the things that naturally drag down all K and C dramas start toward the end. Actors/characters that appeared in the beginning suddenly disappear. The ML’s mother appears for one episode but doesn’t appear at the wedding. His youngest niece doesn’t either. And then there’s an introduction of a character who seemingly looks like she’s going to have a big impact, but instead, she is just a plot device that doesn’t have a clear ending. The ML was married before and his former sister in law visits, determined to get out of debt. Even after both the ML and FL give her all the money they have, she still decides to steal an expensive painting. Thankfully, that doesn’t happen when the FL’s uncle intervenes. But then she just… vanishes. It makes you wonder why they introduced the character to begin with. And this is just one instance. Other characters and plots pop up, but then they have no bearing on the overall story. Such as the FL being able to buy an apartment while staying in a dorm, or the fact that she skips school for months, but then moves right back into the dorm with her same roommates as if nothing happened. These are just a few examples where things just start to make so little sense. Luckily, their relationship remains coherent, even despite their breakup and trivial subplots.

So yes, the dreaded confusion of K and C dramas shines here, but at least it all happens in the end. But then again, the ML doesn’t even find out about the FL’s illness until the second-to-last episode. Yep, I kid you not. That actually happens. It feels as if half the actors dropped the project, or the producers didn’t think they had a complete story to finish. It sucks, because there are many interactions we missed out on. The painful scene we could have seen of the FL’s mother reacting to her death. Her mother visiting the ML and witness just how much this man truly LOVES her daughter. Some of the most heartbreaking scenes happen over the phone and not in person. It’s incredible how much they fumbled in the last stretch. And for the love of god, why does he have Boys Over Flowers hair???

But I’ll stop being negative and finally give my highest rating so far to a C-drama that truly deserves it. But, in all honesty, it’s the FL lead you want to watch. Her acting is the reason this show stands on its own two feet. She is going to make an even bigger impact on the industry, trust me. So I hope you give this drama a chance, even if you’re against age differences in couples or you hate the confusion that all K-dramas suffer from. You won’t regret it.

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