Absolutely the Best Love Story
According to MDL, I've watched at least 114 K-Dramas; several of them over 100 episodes.This one has shot straight up to Number One, after watching it all.
My awards:
Most Breathtaking Actor: Namkoong Min (Lee Jeong Hyeon)
Most Convincing Character Growth: Ahn Eun Jin (Yu Gil Chae)
Most Tragic Character (tied with Bidam [Seondeok]): Kim Yoon Woo (Ryang Eum)
Most Inspiring Support Role: Choi Mu Seong (Gu Yang Cheon)
Most Supportive Friend: Ahn Eun Jin (Kyung Eun Ae)
Honorable Mentions:
Most Delusional/Pathetic Character: Moon Sung Geun (Lee Yeon Hyeon's ... spoiler)
2nd Most Delusional/Pathetic Character: Lee Hak Joo (Nam Yeon Jun)
Best Ending Ever: My Dearest (Part 2)
Cannot recommend this drama highly enough.
You have to watch it to believe it. I will never forget it.
Also, cinematography to die for.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ... ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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Very disappointing.
It had everything ... and did so little with it. First two episodes - great. 3 & 4 - okay.It was fine up until the last two episodes.
Plot development was lame. No surprises, no twists, nothing to figure out, just setup, and then failure.
No character development. No new discoveries. The heroine, bless her, never won my respect.
She was a mess, no self confidence, nothing heroic about her. She was a weak character.
Putting the little girl in a compromising position - and the whole cult thing was a red herring. Absolute crap.
Johan's character and background were shamefully underdeveloped.
Poor Kim Nam Gil was forced to just act miserable throughout the series. It's not a wonder he welcomed death.
I wanted to die too. Honestly, halfway through the last episode, I couldn't wait for it to end. But wait ... there's more! 😓
A terrible waste of something that could have been a great story, with great actors, in awesome surroundings.
But, unfortunately, the writers were asleep at the wheel.
If they make another one (as they threatened to do at the ending) I won't be watching it.
After all the hype ... there were like 200 monsters at the end, against 5 people. Totally unrealistic. Then, in that already unrealistic situation, they weakened their main character, Van, into a virtual liability.
The best thing in the ending was the old priest showing up with a silver bullet rocket launcher.
Abysmal ending to an okay story.
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Everything a melodrama should be ... and more ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I was initially put off by the 50 episodes, because I had just watched another long drama, but I really loved Bae Doona in Sense8, so I went ahead, anyway.Honestly, I couldn't stop watching, and ended up binge watching 50 episodes in less than a week! The time just flew by. By episode 35 I was glad there were 15 more to go ... and never got fed up with it.
The main characters are so well written, and so well acted, that I really felt I was in the room, living through the story. The drama has meaningful character growth, couples fighting against impossible odds, and over coming serious trauma and heartache.
I loved the 'vibe' at the rooming house, especially the old grandma, who held it all together, and really created a lovely family home life for her downtrodden tenants.
The night club was also a fun place to be, although it never seemed to be full, and was really made to feel like a third rate night club, as it was called. But somehow, you still wanted to be there. Here, I especially loved Kang Suk's mother, and respected the club owner.
It's an older show, but I feel very much that I would have missed out if I'd written it off for that reason - it turned out to be one of my favorite dramas ever watched ... in any language! Highly recommended!!
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This review may contain spoilers
3 Episodes too long, gratiuitous obstacles. Awful writing,
"I'm going to go now ... if I go now, I won't come again, so please, please open your eyes right now."What a stupid, ridiculous thing to say in a hospital to someone with a head injury.
Wake up now, or I won't see you again ... IS THE WRITER DRUNK?
At this point, O Sol deserves for him to die, and she deserves to die as well. The writer of that line should be fired on the spot. O Sol is the stupidest female lead character I've ever seen.
PS - by the end of Episode 15, I couldn't bring myself to watch the last one.
They had already screwed it so badly that I didn't care anymore if they both got hit by a train.
In fact, I would have preferred that. It should have ended at Episode 13. The rest of it was hopeless.
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Misleading Title ...
The overall story, once it gets interesting, is good,Gong Yoo and the female lead are excellent. Worth watching? Yes! ... once
First, "The Trunk" is a red herring. It has little actual relevance to the plot.
It's supposed to be so valuable - worth billions, yet every main character seems to have one.
Best scene - the fake wife thumping the real wife. Full marks for satisfaction!!
Worth watching just for this.
Finally, while the story was unique and well thought out, the amount of effort put into the ending was very disappointing ... AFTER EVERYTHING THEY GO THROUGH ... the writers give us a vague ending?
I'm sorry, but it wasn't cute, and it didn't cut it. Very underwhelming ending. Thoroughly lame.
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I hate everyone in this show.
Main female lead: vapid, miserable, stupid, and lacks any sense of self-preservation,Male lead ... oh, wait. Is there a male lead?
I watched for Seo Ji Seok, but even he plays an irredeemable jerk.
Then, as if there weren't already enough absolutely USELESS characters in this drama,
they brought an extra pair of wastrels and con artists (the building owner's brother) into the story,
presumably to make show even more pathetic and miserable.
Meanwhile, the show had the audacity to play pathetically 'sad music' for the awful characters,
who should have been getting their legs twisted, instead.
I have never watched such a bad show in my life.
Did I finish watching? Oh, you bet I'm finished watching this drama.
Can't believe I made it to episode 11 without jumping off a bridge.
Thank you to the previous reviewers who saved me from watching any more of this drivel.
Did anyone even READ this script, before putting it into production? Wow.
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Second viewing reveals so much more!
This first time I watched this drama, I absolutely enjoyed it. But because I was new to Korean history, I didn't understand a lot of the subtext, or the historical context. I loved the drama ... and I was mostly focused on the two main characters, whose story is very engaging. The show - even without the context and subtext I now have - was worth watching again, and now, a year later I am mid-way through it a second time, and this time, it's blowing me away!Watching it a second time, my perspective has shifted dramatically. Understanding, now, who Lee Bang Won is, historically, my attention is somewhat drawn away from the two main characters, and riveted on the performance rendered by Jang Hyeok. WOW! I have seen this character portrayed by other actors ... all really good performances, but Jang Hyeok's performance is stellar.
If you haven't seen this show yet, I very highly recommend it.
Don't miss what I missed - and keep an eye peeled on Jang Hyeok, while also enjoying the other aspects of the story. I'm at episode 14, the second time around, and I can't wait to sit down and watch some more!! 😀
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This film is dark, in parts.
Not only the theme is dark at times, but the actual cinematography is often done with the lighting behind, so you can't see much definition in the characters' faces. Especially night scenes and indoor scenes were very poorly lit.I did feel like there wasn't enough interaction, after the two main characters' first meeting, to justify the rich guy's level of obsession, and also that the poor guy's reaction to being sought after was inexplicably aggressive, and rude - for no reason I could fathom. That's down to the script, though.
Otherwise the film was very good. The acting excellent as expected; Kim Nam Gil never fails to deliver. Generally, the plot was interesting, and held my attention.
Overall, I enjoyed the film and, literally, wish I could have seen more of it.
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A beautifully crafted story, well executed. Don't Miss thiis.
Foreshadowing is subtle, and the story unfolds organically. Nothing feels rushed, dragged out, or contrived. There are layers, upon layers, of complexity, just as in real life. No characters are one-dimensional, and every character is treated as a human, rather than a plot device. It was a privilege to watch this well crafted drama. I watched it all in two days ... could not put it down.Was this review helpful to you?
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Loved it. Hated it.
Goo Joon Pyo, the main spoiled, selfish, brat of the F4 is ultimately rewarded for being such a total jerk.I hate that.
The lead girl, Geum Jan Di, was just not special enough for the F4 to be making such a fuss over her. She was constantly miserable, moping, uncommunicative, and wistful. She was hard to watch, slumping, stomping, and making weird faces. The kiss scenes were awkward and awful, and she managed to diminish what few feel-good moments there were, with her stiffness. Her character also makes stupid decisions at every opportunity.
I don't blame the young actress. The script was lame - but I hated her character.
Geum Jan Di's parents - while understandably meant to provide some comedy relief, were ridiculously over-the-top, and so goofy it made them unlikeable. Certainly unlovable. Geum Kang San, Jan Di's brother was great, and the little actor played his part admirably. I adored him.
So Yi Jung (the potter)'s story is actually quite workable, and he smoothed out any wrinkles with his fabulous acting, charisma, and charm. He did a great job, considering he didn't have much to work with. The very talented Kim Bum really rose to the occasion, and I loved his character.
Chu Ga Eul, the girl whom So Yi Jung eventually grew to love (once he'd finally worked out his issues), was a breath of fresh air. Honest, kind, enduring, and considerate. It was a straight-forward part to play, and the actress executed it admirably. I loved her.
Song Woo Bin, the mobster's son, had an embarrassingly underdeveloped back story. His character started nowhere, and ended nowhere. The entire character seems to have been an afterthought for visual effect, and a bit of rough. The actor did the best he could with the storyline, and managed to be both likable and believable.
I might have loved him, had he developed into a person. Failing a better script, options were limited. This is no fault of the actor, who did his job well. I liked him.
Yoon Ji Hoo, who was warm, kind, considerate, and steadfast ... was punished for his dazzling humanity by being given a storyline so sad and disheartening that the hopelessness of his very existence rivaled that of even Bidam (from Queen Seon Deok). The gut-punch of his storyline's ending was too much for me,
and I thoroughly hated it.
Ji Hoo himself, however, was a prince among men ... and I loved him dearly.
I've become a fan of the actor, and am starting to discover his musical talents, as well.
I was outraged by the final episode.
The music was tedious and much too loud. I was constantly adjusting the volume between blaring SONGS and modest dialogue. Watch it again? I'm too angry to answer that right now.
The F4's visuals, as well as the solidity, and dynamics, of their 4-way friendship was a big bonus in this drama.
It's a friendship I will never forget, and I feel privileged to have been a fly on the wall, watching this life-long friendship endure the hardships together. There were moments when I even liked the actress playing Jan Di, who was occasionally quite cute, and had a nice smile ... occasionally. The F4's true friendship endures the drama, and the half baked script. I loved the friendship.
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Cheated by disrespctful writers, again.
What an absolute waste of 2 hours' time!Writers owe me a refund of my time.
What was the point of all that walking around in the park - and no picnic at the end of it?
Nothing. They even show the headlights pulling into the park ... but couldn't let us watch him meet the sister? 종말?
My blood boils.
Writers need to understand that they disrespect their audience with their perverse "artistic messaging" nonsense.
Viewers arrive at a show to collect a delivery.
The writers don't deliver.
The writers stood us up at the altar.
Bastards.
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Well worth watching despite stupid ending.
Overall, the drama is nearly excellent - if not for the ending, I'd have given it a 10.There was a lot of misdirection - and not in a good way. I felt cheated afterward, like I'd been led on a merry chase, but it turned out to be a drag hunt. Foreshadowing that doesn't pan out is not satisfying viewing. There is only one great plot twist - and it's worth waiting for. I didn't see that coming.
The whole time, you're waiting for the satisfaction of the truth being revealed, but it's a hoax from beginning to end. You don't even get to find out who the father was.
However - I fell in love with the cast, and wouldn't give up the time I got to spend with them, in their story, at all. I do NOT regret watching, and might watch it again someday just for very relatable characters in the story. I wish I'd known at the beginning that the ending would be disappointing - zero ultimate satisfaction for the viewer - then I could have enjoyed for what it was - and the story was very nearly great. Definitely WATCH IT - but take it in stride. I don't think anyone will regret watching it.
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Highly Recommended
I didn't love the lead actress, really. I found her bland and expressionless. But it didn't ruin the show for me, and I would still highly recommend this show.Good rewatch value, after a while. Lee Yun-gi, who appears to actually be able to ride a horse properly, *and* handle a gun at the same time - absolutely gets the MVP (Most Valuable Player) award for this!!
Honorable mentions to Otani Ryohei (Samurai Kanemaru) & Choi Jae Sung
(Yoon Kang's father).
Lovable characters, hatable characters, twists and turns, and all plot lines well resolved, to my satisfaction.
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I love it because it's very down-to-earth. Very well written, and not contrived.
I did not once get frustrated by a constant barrage of contrived obstacles 'preventing' the main romance from progressing.TBH, I'm not here for the angst. When a story takes place within a situation that's genuinely difficult to resolve, that's one thing, but I'm getting sick of romances than finally begin in the final episodes of the show, that drag on, and on, with rushed finish. This is not like that.
I was impressed that the early story was mysterious for a while, but resolved itself quite early in the drama, so we could get to see the couple spend some time AS a couple. It was very realistic that they gradually got better and better at resolving their misunderstandings, faster and with less fuss each time. I thought the pace was perfect.
I smiled so much, throughout this show, that I thought my face might stay that way. It was fun, heartwarming, interesting, and had several noble characters who got a chance to show their best aspects to come out in a better place than where they started.
I gave it 9.5 oput of 10 because I couldn't find anything to criticize about it. It was wonderful. It did everything I needed it to do.
The soundtrack didn't make me stop watching to go get the songs, but some were quite nice, and all fitted the story. At no point was the soundtrack annoying, or out of step with the feel of the show.
I will definitely watch it again, just because it made me happy to watch it.
Especially loved the boy who played main chaebol as a kid. ❤️
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It's a good thing there's a Season 2 ...
Season 1 ending where it did would have really made me angry, so I'm glad there was a Season 2 ready to go right away. I haven't finished S2 yet, but Season 1 was terrific. The prickly relationship between the two main characters is funny, infuriating, sad, and beautiful ... engaging at every turn.But the story is so much more than that. It's historically engaging, and emotive, too.
Images you can't unsee make you think about the incredibly difficult lives of Korea's ancestors.
It is an honest, well told story I will probably watch again in the future.
Highly recommended. Namkoong Min is incredible. Just superb in this role.
Choi Moo Sung also brings a moving character to the story.
I hope Season 2 ends well. In any case, I will not regret having watched it.
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