I was really enjoying this up to episode 10, but then it went in a direction that I really didn't like. I'm also confused why Ai-oon and Ob-oom's father completely changed. Did I miss something?
I'm in love wirh thia drama.... ML confidence, discipline, enduranceFL sweetness, lotalty,
I'm only on episode 3, but so far the ML is an uneducated, loud, arrogant bully. I'm hoping for some character growth soon. The female lead on the other hand seems very intelligent, sensible and mature. EDIT: The ML did experience was some character growth, but less than I personally would have wished for. I really did like the FL throughout the entire drama.
I'm 7 episodes in, and I'm absolutely loving this drama. I haven't read the novel, but I'm curious about your comment "initial concerns with the problematic novel it's based off". Could you please let me know what those problems are? That will help me decide if I want to buy the novel to read after I've finished the drama.
Finally, Pluto the series has come to an end. I am grateful to enjoy watching so many wonderful GL creations in…
If you're a big fan of GL, which it seems you are, you should consider watching "Don't Mess With Senior - Season 2". It is a Cambodian GL series, and although low budget, it is well filmed and is (in my opinion) quite entertaining. It can only be watched through their app. (for now - they'll likely upload it all to YouTube in 6-12 months like they did with Season 1. There are quite a lot cute and/or funny clips from season 2 on the "Sastra Film App" YouTube page. You won't find a MDL page because they don't allow Cambodian or Vietnamese dramas to be uploaded for some reason. It's currently airing with one new episode released per week.
Am I the only one who feels like they don't suit each other? 😅
Personally I love age gap dramas (Noona romances especially), where on first appearances they seem to not be suited to each other and they have to deal with societal and family expectations. With Jin A amd Jun Hui, for me the issue was not so much they didn't suit each other, but rather they were both deeply flawed individuals who will struggle with relationships with anyone. Jin A is a pathological liar with the emotional intelligence of a pine cone. Jun Hui was not as bad, but his jealously and impulsive decision making were problematic. For my taste, they made the lead characters too flawed, at least Jin A was.
A short and cute drama. There's nothing particularly special about it, but I found it quite entertaining even if some of the final episodes were a bit draggy. The ending was quite sweet.
"on the other" and "someone else" have OPPOSITE meanings. "On the other" means a person who IS involved in the contract, while "someone else" means a third party who is NOT involved in the contract.
I've only watched the first four episodes, but I don't think this is correct: "if either has a crush on the other the contract would be null and void." In episode 4 at timestamp 12:54, Xu Mu says to Xie Shi, "During the contract, if one of us likes someone else, the contract ends". This is the Viki English subtitle.
If I had to sum up this drama in one word, it would be "frustrating". It had the potential to be one of the best dramas I have ever watched, and for the first third to half of the drama, it was amazing. But then it started to go downhill. My main complaints: * The OST was bad. It consisted of a handful of old, English language country songs that they played WAY too often, and played too loud as well. * The episodes were unnecessarily long. There were WAY too many scenes in which literally nothing happened for 1 or more minutes (e.g. someone just sitting/standing and looking sad, someone leaning against a wall, someone walking along a path etc.). Every episode could have probably been trimmed by 10 minutes just by shortening these scenes. * Some subplots were just forgotten about or a resolution happened off screen. This is (in my opinion) poor writing as it derpives the viewer of the expected payoff after investing so much screen time (and emotion) in the buildup. I have to suspect changes were made to the script during production, as I could never imagine any competent writer would do this. * The manipulative evil mother is a WAY overused trope in KDramas, but this drama took it to an absurd level. Yun Jin A's mother was a psychopath. What she did to her daugher was abuse. * I felt many of the characters were poorly written, coming across as two-dimensional and mostly and unlikeable.
With Son Ye Jin and Jung Hae In starring, this could have been THE best noona romance Kdrama of all time. However, it wasn't to be. I thought the ending was done quite well, but it was too little, too late, and didn't change the fact I finished the drama feeling unsatisfied and dissapointed about what could have been an amazing viewing experience, but only ended as a slightly above average drama. 8.0/10
I can't even begin to understand the Korean mentality in which people think they have the right to make decisions for other adults. This sort of coercive, controlling behaviour is just so manifestly wrong, and I am very pleased I don't live in such an psychologically oppressive society.
In episode 8 with the women in the Karaoke room, they are singing along to my favourite Korean song of all time, the classic "Azalea" by Maya. And for anyone who's interested, Korean all-female rock band Rolling Quartz did a cover of that classic song: https://youtu.be/EVbR7F2YgNQ
K-Drama 
In episode 4 at timestamp 12:54, Xu Mu says to Xie Shi, "During the contract, if one of us likes someone else, the contract ends". This is the Viki English subtitle.
My main complaints:
* The OST was bad. It consisted of a handful of old, English language country songs that they played WAY too often, and played too loud as well.
* The episodes were unnecessarily long. There were WAY too many scenes in which literally nothing happened for 1 or more minutes (e.g. someone just sitting/standing and looking sad, someone leaning against a wall, someone walking along a path etc.). Every episode could have probably been trimmed by 10 minutes just by shortening these scenes.
* Some subplots were just forgotten about or a resolution happened off screen. This is (in my opinion) poor writing as it derpives the viewer of the expected payoff after investing so much screen time (and emotion) in the buildup. I have to suspect changes were made to the script during production, as I could never imagine any competent writer would do this.
* The manipulative evil mother is a WAY overused trope in KDramas, but this drama took it to an absurd level. Yun Jin A's mother was a psychopath. What she did to her daugher was abuse.
* I felt many of the characters were poorly written, coming across as two-dimensional and mostly and unlikeable.
With Son Ye Jin and Jung Hae In starring, this could have been THE best noona romance Kdrama of all time. However, it wasn't to be. I thought the ending was done quite well, but it was too little, too late, and didn't change the fact I finished the drama feeling unsatisfied and dissapointed about what could have been an amazing viewing experience, but only ended as a slightly above average drama.
8.0/10