Luna

I thought it's pretty obvious who she ends up with. Maybe it's shippers in denial?? idk

What I really loved about this drama is how the relationship between Hyun Soo and Ji Won prevailed as the main focus of the drama overall. The crime plot was the foundation of Hyun Soo's human struggles and his relationship to his family. The otp's story unfolded beautifully going through different stages, never too rushed but also not too slow and never lost its tension. And it wasn't ever sidelined unlike in most romance/crime dramas but was the prevalent force of the drama. I will miss these two so much <3

This drama = K-Drama 101 starterpack:

- female lead acting like a 4 year old also high-pitched screaming every two minutes
- male lead being a jerk for no reason other than having a childhood trauma
- evil parents
- bff played by park jinjoo
- last minute break-up with a year timeskip
- love-triangle with a second male lead whose sole purpose is to initiate some conflicts between the lead couple
- lead girl blaming herself for stuff she didn't do, noble idiocy

I could go on counting more but I'm stopping now. Anyways I skipped a lot stuff in the second half as it was unbearably boring. I only started this for the double role plot but it was a waste of time tbh, it could've been way better :/

I loved the relationship between Go Hye Ran and Han Ji Won so much! We really need more of those dramas where two strong independent woman put their beef aside and work together and *boom* world domination.

I'm on episode 4/16 so far and wonder why so many people sympathisize with Gi-seok. I feel like he's only dating Jeong-in as an obligation/expectation by his social circle and doesn't really care for her personally. He only started giving her more attention once her feelings were swayed by someone else. Plus him saying a boyfriend doesn't need to ask for sex was pretty cringe.

I'm not a very confident person so I really admired how Song Ah learned violin from scratch and took the exam multiple times to reach her dreams. Not caring about what others say, simply doing what she wants! So her being so insecure about it, constantly comparing herself to people who started before her is kinda contradictory to her behavior at the start, making her less admirable in my eyes.

That being said it's also a pointless conflict since she'll never get does years back and most likely won't surpass Jung Kyung. I mean wasn't this clear to her from the beginning like when she started learning in her 20s? Plus it kinda rubs me the wrong way when girls in dramas try to match the status of the guy with feeling insecure about literally everything.

Maybe it's realistic in some people's eyes but I just don't like the direction this took.

Thank you! I do like twisted dramas so willing to give it a chance.

"The Protector is a film about a man's desperate struggle to protect someone."

Umm, you don't say?? What an insightful and unexpected description.

Netflix (in my country at least)

So glad for this comment, currently watching KMJ in Tempted (has the whole 'package' you mentioned) and needed him in a non-cringe drama. This sounds ideal <3

This drama is literally the epitome of this kind of mindset

thx!

I just saw the tags and I didn't know the tag "Puppy-dog eyed male lead" was a thing lmao xD

So tempted to watch this one since I love two of the main actors, KJW and KNG. I know about the backstage mess, would you still recommend watching it?

oh and can anyone recommend a drama without some of those tropes for me?

I'm relating so much xD As a person who loves realistic/logical development the last one especially annoys me. The pre-dating phase in romance dramas is one of my favorite things, like the anticipation of the first meeting, waiting for the leads to become closer, celebrating even the tiniest interaction, waiting for the confession/first kiss etc. But if they take that away and just straightly jump into the relationship it just gets bland. I feel nothing and eventually lose interest.

Oh and another one: male leads that are like "i'm an asshole and always treat people like trash but bear with me since I actually have either shitty parents/upbringing ptsd because of *insert traumatic experience* in my childhood". Like if y'all want to make a character who's a rather grumpy/rude just do it without those unoriginal backstories! Not those stupid "Goo Jun Pyo"- ones smh

It's kinda annoying how dramas often use this "it doesn't matter if your crush doesn't like you back! If you're persistant enough, interfere in their relationships, sacrifice yourself and dedicate your life to that person they're bound to like you anyways" narrative. Not only does it come off as creepy and obsessive it's also simply not true. The sad thing is that many people/young people behave like that in real life, it really ain't it.

Ew ikr, I heard he's backed by his extremely wealthy family. So a real-life chaebol dude. Explains how he was able to return to TV after his disgusting scandals...anyways hard pass on this.

Hope you'll enjoy it~ It was my first drama of GJ and he was an absolute scene stealer <3

If you want a comedy drama without romance there's The Fiery Priest. He plays a major villain there and has a lot screentime.

For a more serious role there's Misty, but he's more of a supporting role although still important. It had romance but in a dark/twisted way. Hope I could help :)