Marshmallow-Chocoholic

No worries :).

High ratings on this website can typically occur as a result of users leaving 10/10 reviews across the board. This can typically cause inaccurate scores which is why ratings on mdl should sometimes be taken with a pinch of salt.

Thank you for reading and I’m glad that you found my review helpful 😁

Thanks Joyce Tyler for reading my review.
I see that you don’t see eye to eye with a lot of my points. I agree to some my views can often be seen as " harsh" or " critical" but I tend to take an unbiased perspective and constructive critical view to dramas. I’m guessing that you probably haven’t read a lot of my reviews beforehand to begin attacking me on my rating. For me a rating of 7.0 is a good show. My review ratings are low not because I hate or have a personal bone to pick with the actors or storyline, but simply because a show has to be entirely flawless ( from my objective perspective) to give it a higher rating. As for the last statement I believe that truly is a matter of opinion than a constructive-critical point. I’m guessing respectively you’re still pretty new to mydramalist. There’s a lot of fun here watching dramas but it’s also a good opportunity to learn about new writing styles and views.

Happy drama watching and I hope you’ll have a good time on this website,
Marshmallow- Chocoholic.

I’m glad that you enjoyed my review.
Thanks for reading!

Hi Kimsamsoom,
Thank you for reading this review and sharing your personal thoughts. I believe a lot of what viewers take from ‘ Hometown Cha Cha Cha’ is dependent on previous experience and opinions of dramas or genres in general. Whilst I didn’t bring it up in my review due to wanting to keep a critical objective and neutral view, I’ve been a long term fan of old slice of dramas from both Korea and Japan for years and so this genre can be quite fun to explore. ‘ Hometown Cha Cha Cha’ itself is based upon the old movie ‘ Mr. Hong’ in a decade where the slice of life genre thrived. As the storyline is given a modern update its evident to see how an old storyline can be perceived as fresh or new in the present day against more heavy-hitting or darker storylines coming out of South-Korea. There’s nothing wrong with that and as you said it does present a sense of nostalgia but critically the character direction was a little mismatched. My biggest personal problem with Hye-Jin was that there was a lit the series tried to present with her character arc rather than didn’t but there were a lot of moments left unexplained with her past and her actions. ( Even one of the most early examples being manipulating the truth in the lift to her future client in the first episode. Did she do this just to avoid small talk?, Was she embarrassed? It seems a small detail but tiny actions can reflect a lot about a character and many of them were rarely put together for Hye-Jin.)

I can understand your point upon the show wanting to focus more on Du Sik but in my opinion to write a symbiotic and dynamic character relationship in a drama and make them feel human, you need characters to have leverage. Yes, there are many drama examples of characters who have “more depth” or “darker pasts” and still can work as main leads. However thinking of some classics such as ‘ Orange Days’ or even more recently ‘ My Love From Another Star’ you can fall in love with this relationship because you’ve seen both main characters grow from their shells of prosaic writing .

Perhaps it is my cynicism getting to me but once you’ve seen a lot of ‘ Cha Cha Cha’ style dramas from different decades ,then the basic premise of ‘ Hometown Cha Cha Cha’ rarely stands out. (That is of course speaking personally . ) I’m glad to hear you can enjoy the drama for all of its flaws and strengths. However I certainly do agree that the rating system on ‘ Mydramalist’ should give you the ability to rate in between stars. My only guess is that the admins got rid of it due to complicating the average rating too much.

Happy drama watching,
Marshmallow- Chocoholic.

Ha, no worries! I made this list awhile back out of boredom. I know a lot of people often deter from making these types of lists on here, but I thought it was good to share some more open thoughts on dramas. I don’t necessarily hate all of these dramas per say personally but there are often contributing factors which can let a series down and which aren’t always addressed.
Thank you for taking the time to look through :).

Thank you for reading and I am glad my review echoed similar thoughts for you :)

Thank you for taking the time to comment on my review ,
I find it interesting as to what you exactly see as ''inaccurate''. I respect that we all see differently and I know that my review style can come across as harsh, critical or draconian to some. Whilst I have written subjectively in the past with some reviews , typically I try taking an objective/ constructive-critical view. This might not necessarily be the most preferred of my own opinions or others towards a show but I am curious to know differing views also.
King regards,
Marshmallow- Chocoholic.

Agreed entirely. I was really looking forward to seeing where they’d take this storyline especially with the morally ethical questioning of the guards shooting one of their own, and how they got involved in the game as well. ( It really is a shame that they didn’t explore this more.)Additionally it would’ve been interesting to have found out more about the VIP members and their involvement in funding or supporting the games also.

Thanks for reading :).

Speaking personally, I am honestly surprised by how overhyped ‘ Crash Landing On You’ actually is. Honestly, I have no problem with people liking it or hating it. After all, everyone’s entitled to their own opinion on shows. ( So long as it’s respectful and isn’t being used to hurt others.)
On the other hand it never ceases to amaze me at times how many people may not be able to accept that some individuals may find a series filled with flawed writing or problems, and instead launch into abuse or criticism against someone who doesn’t necessarily agree with them.

I must admit that this is supposed to be a rom-com and udnt supposed to be serious per say. On the other hand, there were a multitude of themes which could’ve been approached better. ( E.g. issues of poverty, the harsh regime in North Korea ,as well as the current troubles of prejudice in South-Korean society against North-Korean defectors. ) I suppose that whilst we do see some of North Korea’s “ brutality”, it is brief and mostly plot-driven than well-written or to make a point. The romance was definitely bland in my books too- not exactly bad per say, just there wasn’t exactly flaming chemistry between our main actors and characters.

Thank you for such an interesting article. My dad passed away suddenly a few months back, but I will never forget the legacy that he shared with me through his love for Kurosawa’s movies :).

Thank you :)

Thanks for such an intriguing article on your thoughts and feelings about different directors. I’ll be honest in saying that I didn’t know all of these names on the list, but you’ve definitely piqued my interest to check them out :). As for KES and Lee Woo Jung, I definitely can see that we think alike. As it has been mentioned before hand in the comments, KES definitely has a mixture of those who either absolutely love or hate her work. I’ve always found her productions can be hit or miss-fascinating setups, just bland upon execution and lacking in depth or logic . I’m studying creative writing at degree level and so noting comparisons between different screenwriters always fascinated me. For me none so is this more apparent than the differences between KES and Lee Woo Jung particularly with how they present their ensemble of characters in their fictional works ( which you noticed also). I agree that what makes Lee Woo Jung a prodigal screenwriter is that she makes her characters feel real. They feel human because at the end of the day Woo Jung rarely shies away from giving them their flaws, backstories and own personal motives. In comparison KES struggles to make her characters feel three-dimensional. This isn’t to say that they can’t be interesting or have notable characteristics , but often her ensemble of created characters feel as though they are written merely as plot devices, rather than feeling flawed and more importantly realistic and relatable . For example one thing which always irked me in Goblin was that over 900 years, our main lead had never had any references to being in any form of relationship or was shown to struggle more profoundly with the guilt and psychological burdens of being practically immortal. It felt such an obvious subject to explore his psyche and character growth in more depth, but once again KES was too focused on the romance factor. On this note it’s also really interesting to note how both screenwriters tackle writing female characters. Whilst it is understandable to an extent, I do believe that it has become a widespread fallacy in writing that screenwriters always struggle to write characters of the opposite gender. However seeing how both screenwriters are women this seems to put an interesting spin on things by proving at the end of day good writing is good writing. A prominent problem with KES with her female characters is that they lack dimension. They can be interesting or quirky such as Sunny ( Goblin) or our FL from ‘ Descendants From The Sun’ but KES either goes down two main bland lines with these characters; boy-obsessed to the point of any intriguing backstories or potential character growth and depth being blanked out, or innocent and naive to the point of worryingly childlike qualities . For me personally the former was one of my major alarm bells with the FL in Goblin. Aside from the controversial pairing, it didn’t match up at all with her experiences of growing up in her complicated environment . The second-half admittedly did fix this in the second-hand to an extent but it still didn’t explain that sudden character growth either. In KES’ world there’s a really solid and obvious separation line between her male and female characters. It’s arguable that perhaps KES may be trying to present a message about society or attitudes and yes, her male characters are hardly impeccably written, but KES rarely seems to write her female characters as just being human and relatable . KGE’s character in King Eternal Monarch was a prime example of this- she had all the potential qualities to be well-written with her goals for becoming an officer and her backstory , but instead she was prosaic and unsurprisingly infatuated for little logical reason aside from plot with the main lead. In comparison I’ve rarely seen Woo Jun draw a definitive line between her male and female characters. Yes, admittedly works such as Prison Playbook we didn’t really see many female characters due to the setting but Hospital Playlist is a really good case of Woo Jun writing all of her characters as sentient . They do have a line in that the women in the series do struggle with their own personal issues , but even the “ potential love interests” felt down to earth and human . I’m looking forward to reading any of your articles in the future :)!

Thank you for such an interesting article. This topic isn’t often addressed amongst watchers of J-dramas/ K-dramas, so it’s interesting to see someone else who feels the same way :). If I’m honest I’ve always been able to flit between both. I started with neither K-dramas or J-dramas at first but a few Taiwanese dramas back in the mid 2010s before moving onto 2000s/ early 2010s J-dramas, then 2000s-2010s Korean shows and a few modern C-dramas.

It’s always an interesting case talking and comparing Japan and SK’s themes and production quality over the past two decades or so. In the past I’d easily say Japan was at the forefront for a long time over SK with production quality( for the time) , sponsorships and fashion in productions. Whilst ‘Boys Over Flowers’ ( SK version) has long remained the more “ mainstream” version due to certain factors, the Japanese version ‘ Hana Yori Dango’ ( though dated) still remains fairly superior over production in my eyes. This is because with sponsorship deals from designers big brands and chosen film settings gave a more authentic taste of certain characters being “ wealthy” than its South-Korean counterpart at times .

Evidently, however, financial gains and losses as well as the rise of Hallyu on an international scale with actors, actresses and K-pop since the late 2000s- early 2010s , I’d easily say SK takes pretty central stage on production quality now. Often watching a modern SK drama now can be a work of art in itself with the aesthetic cinematography. It is a cliche example, but ‘ Goblin’ is a prime example- the camera work is fairly beautiful, the scenery, the shoots and the chosen palettes can add vivid detail to the storyline, themes and characters.

Being in the game of watching dramas from both countries for a while now one of the biggest things to say is also watching growth and setbacks in both countries. On certain grounds J-dramas have lost their mojo a little compared to the past as production and fashion ( unless evidently for a set decade or character type) can sometimes be a little outdated and sloppy, and storylines can often feel a bit recycled. K-dramas/ productions of course aside from production value have seen a lot of change in the past two decades.

In the 2000s the evident game-changer in Korean cinema was watching the array of cult-classics which gave ( in some cases) Hollywood a run for its money- ‘ A Tale Of Two Sisters’, ‘ Oldboy’, ‘ Thirst’, ‘ A Sympathy For Mr Vengeance’ and ‘ I’m A Cyborg, But That’s Okay’ are brilliant cases of South-Korea’s edgier experimentation in film and cinema. ( Which evidently still continues to a certain extent today with now more mainstream hits such as ‘ Train To Busan’, ‘ The Witch;Part 1’, ‘ The Call’ and of course ‘ Parasite’)

However in the mainstream with South Korean dramas, violence and more explicit themes during this period of the early 2010s was pretty taboo. Evidently with more international attention certain themes unaddressed in the past are more open on certain grounds. You need to look no further , ‘Sky Castle’, ‘ ‘Love With Flaws’, ‘ Be Melodramatic’, ‘ School 2013’ and ‘ It’s Okay, Not To Be Okay’ not to notice certain awareness about some subject areas. Overall in more recent years South-Korea has been in the international spotlight bringing certain advantages and disadvantages to the overall experiences of these shows . High-budgets through contract deals with companies such as Netflix can create some beautiful and brilliant K-dramas. Look no further than ‘ Kingdom’- a period- fusion zombie drama which has good screenwriting and is cinematically mesmerising, ‘ Extracurricular’ a dark and somewhat morbid satire about the South-Korean educational system and ‘ Navillera’ a heartbreaking journey of friendship across a generational gap.

To a lesser extent even Japan has tried to venture here with partnership deals with Netflix. Dramas which would’ve otherwise remained unnoticed internationally such as the survival game genre thriller ‘ Alice In Borderland’ have gained renewal seasons and deserved attention. However at times this recent fad of high-budget dramas especially in recent South-Korean productions can be a classic example or a quick cash grab; conservative , recycled and churned out. Of course this isn’t always the case but this is what I like to nickname the recent trend of “ throwaway dramas”- easy to produce and quickly pass off mediocre or adequate screenwriting, dialogue or storylines and selling it to an international audience with the gravitas of being aesthetically pretty, or having a certain cast lineup. In the past two years alone I can think of a multitude of K-dramas which were examples of this including high-profile shows such as ‘ Vincenzo’ , ‘ Rugal’ , ‘ Alice’, ‘ River Where The Moon Rises’ and ‘ Love Alarm’ are prime examples for me. This isn’t of course to drag down the crew members or cast involved as often they work really hard and most of the time do good jobs but other factors ( often with writing) can contribute to these shows being high-budget extravaganzas without a lot of final momentum.


J-dramas are an interesting case. Whilst there has been a little branching out into international waters through platforms such as Netflix, they can vary a lot from Korean shows. The production quality may be poor in comparison and perhaps the fashion isn’t as chic as it used to be a decade ago in J-dramas but even if a storyline isn’t the most original or is a part of the “ cute and fluffy “ genre, certain themes and even dialogue moments can sometimes be more bittersweet, profound or philosophical . I’ve always found this throughout this window of watching J-dramas. Watching shows from the 2000s such as ‘ Orange Days’ and then a fairly recent drama like ‘ Flowers For Algernon’, there’s a notable pattern of not biting back from delivering emotional punches or hard realities.


“ International” Fanbases are also an interesting topic of debate between both countries. Asking a K-drama fan more than a decade ago to name someone they know who likes Korean dramas would’ve been a challenge and visiting older webpages from the late 2000s-early 2010s( including on here), it’s evident to see the K-drama community was more close-knit and small. Of course nowadays with more people becoming enthralled with South-Korean culture it’s interesting to see this once small community boom. Most friends that I know have seen at least one K-drama or watch them on a regular basis now compared to in the past . With more international communities coming together it does of course bring many advantages and disadvantages.

On a positive side it’s wonderful to talk, see different views and become friends with people from different countries and walks of life who like K-dramas. On a negative and like most fan communities which grow large, there’s also the problem of having more toxicity and nastiness from a small minority who become fixated on causing drama, or attacking someone if their views are “ wrong” or “ different” in their eyes. Sadly I know a lot of people who have become deterred from watching K-dramas or being associated with this community due to these individuals coming after them online . Even personally I’ve received some harassing messages and comments from certain individuals in this small minority in the past two months alone which can often leave a bitter taste afterwards.

The J-drama community reminds me a lot of what the K-drama community used to be like in the past- not as small with evidently a more versatile range of individuals due to improvements in social media platforms , but not as colossal as the K-drama community either. You can of course come across bad apples like in any community, but I’ve noticed this issue is often quickly stamped out and easier to contain than with the former .

Overall I think that both have their advantages and disadvantages. For me personally J-dramas win with their themes and community atmosphere, whilst K-dramas are aesthetic and are beginning to tackle more versatile themes. In the past six years, I’ve seen a lot of change in both dramas and their impacts but I’m intrigued to see where they’ll develop from in the future ;).

Okay I’m going to give some honest thoughts on the drama. It’s been said before in the comments but Hometown Cha-Cha- Cha is a really sweet and lighthearted break from more labyrinthine storylines in dramas. As a remake of the 2000s movie ‘ Mr Hong’ , the storyline has been updated pretty well and is pretty straightforward enough to follow. The villagers oddly do grow on you in early episodes and I am looking forward to the series exploring more about their stories as well as the main leads’ pasts. On a more critical note the female lead is a bit too much of a blank slate at the minute; calm, but lacking a lot of initial dimension, goals or reasons. Admittedly it is early days and so hopefully the drama will delve more into her character later on. On the plus side the acting front is pretty solid here also. If you’re wondering whether to watch this because it seems too overrated already, my biggest advice is give it a go. You may love it, or you may hate it; who knows :) ?

Agreed entirely . Thank you for reading and sharing your thoughts :).

* Jun Ho*- I believe you have to watch the last episodes to know about this on the acting front.

Everyone’s entitled to their own opinions whether we agree with them or not . I don’t necessarily agree with all of Nauriya’s points , but I don’t really see the point of hounding them either. Let’s just accept that we all have different views and watch the show instead.

Thank you :).