Really good fun!
Short: Short but well paced romantic drama that traces a group of people from their mid teens until their early thirties, focusing on the two leads and their long romance. Most of it is primarily from her perspective, but the final episode is all from his and explains a lot. Brilliant performances particularly from So Ju Yeon who is a young actress who manages to pull off such a wide age range really well. This is just pure fun really!Detail:
To be honest, I wasn't going to watch this one for a while because it's another school romance and... I've watched a couple of school dramas lately and was looking for something a different, but with So Ju Yeon in it I decided I'd give it a shot and see how it went.
Opening scenes and her character is just solid sugar, she's squeaks when she talks and is just a non-stop walking cute-monster - which isn't meant to be a compliment, I wasn't sure how I was going to cope with this character but decided to stick with it.
Took about by the end of that episode for her silliness and genuineness of her character to come through and I started warming to the show and the other characters as well.
This story tracks them from 2006 to current day as they are in school, going through something like four years of school and graduating, going to university and entering their careers. We see a relatively high speed (though it doesn't feel rushed) snapshot through their lives and it ought to be inspiring to younger viewers to see this development in such a short space of time - if you're ever in school wondering if it will ever end, or if what your life will be like afterwards, while it's not exactly documentary-level, it's an entertaining glimpse into the transition that young adults make as they grow, including when things don't go according to plan.
The majority of the story is essentially from Sol I's perspective (the female lead), as she opens the whole drama by declaring her feelings for Heon (the male lead) - who immediately rejects her flat - and then spends the majority of what follows utterly relentlessly chasing him down despite what seem to be his best efforts to gently ignore her.
There's a love triangle in it, and this is the second drama in a while where i've honestly felt that the second lead is an incredible human being in general. Part of me was hoping against the writers wishes that the better man, the second lead, would get the girl, because he really was just a better person in my eyes. Alas, first leads always get the girl, I don't consider that a spoiler, it shouldn't come as any surprise. :)
I had some real problems with Heon's character and his actions. He teetered on the fine line between being assertive and red-flag-aggressive. Maybe i'm just too sensitive to such things, but it was part of what made me start rooting for the second lead.
Up until the final episode of this drama I was going to give it maybe a 7.5 ? Mostly because of my concerns with Heon and the unbalanced nature of the whole thing. Then the final episode comes on, and it's HIS side of the story. I won't go any further, but, balance restored.
I come out of this drama warm and fuzzy, it was entertaining and I was always looking forward to the next episode and i'm a bit sad having spent 14 years with this characters that I now have to say goodbye, but, that's what I have to do. To me, that's the sign of a good story and is why I give it a higher grade than most people seem to have. Swimming against the tide? That's me :)
Characters are all great and the secondary arcs are enjoyable. It's great seeing all their friends later in life and how various stories have played out in the background. There's one moment where there's a bit of a reunion and you genuinely feel almost like you're part of that experience, seeing this characters again and reminiscing about old times.
So - don't be put off by school drama (it isn't all in school anyway), and stick with it to the end - that final episode made a big difference for me and was beautifully written.
Watch it again? Heck yes, this one's full of the warm fuzzies, particularly after you know the full story and can then enjoy it more fully on subsequent rewatches.
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Confused Mess
So much promise. Looks like they've set up something really clever."Traditional" time travel is single dimensional - go back in the past, change, and it affects the future instantly, you know, good old cause and effect. Back to the Future where Marty and his family start disappearing from the family photo when he accidentally messes up how his mum and dad meet? That kinda thing. It's classic, it works. Is it the only thought line for time travel? No, definitely not, but it's the one usually covered in stories.
There are other thoughts on Time Travel like - maybe it's multi dimensional, now instead of progressing along a single line back and forth, now you're moving through *time* in two dimensions, which means you can go back to the future version of a past and changes you make there don't affect *your* past because that's a previous version of it! Confusing? Quite a bit... but... wouldn't it be cool if someone attempted it?
I thought that's what we had here.
Nope, turns out the writers just don't get time travel at all. It all just becomes a confused mess, going back to the same moment and playing it out differently (that's multi dimensional!) but then also having cause and effect (that's one dimensional) and maybe not entirely because.. well.. argh. Mess, mess, mess.
... and... is this a love story? because if so it's... wrong. This is mother and son! If it's not a romance, what's with all the romance music (which I liked, hence the good score on the sound track, just really confusing how it was used!).
Apparently the main character has alexythemia (where you have no emotional response, basically) - except, he's crying and feeling bad and so forth lots and lots, so you have to come to the conclusion that he actually is just a bit of a miserable so-and-so and covers it up by saying that. I'm going to try that later I think see if anyone buys it :)
I really enjoyed the actors work, they were the highlight of this drama, some great cast here and they do a great job.
I'm MOSTLY gutted because this had some real potential. I want to think that the writer had a great idea and it got hacked about and corrupted somehow, because there's the nucleous of something great. It's not that the ending was rushed and didn't make sense (though, honestly, it barely made sense) - it stopped making sense about half way through and you begin to realise that... hmm... i'm not sure the Captain of this plane is firing on all cylinders...
I'm going to stop here. Not recommended. Cast were fantastic, music was great, production values were really good too, but... story... the story... yoikes.
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Longer...
The FL is 10 years older than the ML. They've known each other for many years and the ML and his sister have practically been raised as siblings to the FL following their own mothers passing and their father abandoning them... so there's some taboo's to overcome when the FL and ML realise their feelings for each other have grown significantly.
This story is one of love, romance and hardship. Fairly early on the couple are getting together and the way in which they overcome that first hurdle of - who makes the first move - was really nicely done. As the relationship grows, the FL's character visibly brightens and changes, she gains confidence and literally becomes more bouncy. There are the silly childish games that couples play in the honeymoon phase along the lines of "no, you hang up first" with some cute scenes involving him dropping her off at home and them taking a long time to actually separate.
There's the FL's brother, the ML's sister, the FL's parents (who by some extension are also somewhat the ML's fake-parents), all of which are probably going to have a problem with this relationship. These are tackled one by one and I thought handled well.
The FL's mother - probably one of my most disliked characters in a story. On the one hand, she's obviously a caring mother, she goes out of her way to help and OUGHT to be a fantastic mother, but she's so controlling and interfering she becomes the clear "bad guy" in this story (that's not a spoiler, it's fairly clear early on who the problem is going to be!). She's acted well though I have to say.
In addition to what's happening in her personal life, the FL has problems at work with sexual harassment from a couple of the male senior staff. I found this whole aspect of the story really hard to watch, but more because it was portrayed well and therefore all the more shameful - not so much about the actual act of harassing but all the scheming and tactics to try and dodge it, cover it up, pass over the blame etc. Ultimately the story kinda builds to a conclusion on this and then SKIPS it however so you actually only find out what ultimately happened via a reminiscence later on, a huge shame.
None of the sound track really stood out for me, it does all seem to be English lyrics which was interesting. One of the songs is a remake of Stand By Your Man - which plays sooo many times - but I found it appropriate if only because this story is clearly - Stand By Your Woman. The FL is going through so many challenges at home and at work, she's a flawed character who makes mistakes on top, and what she needs most (and, for the most part, what she gets from the ML) is support.
So, was it worth watching?
I'd recommend watching this one because of the first 2/3 being SO good, it goes beyond the ridiculously cute honeymoon phase to further in where things become more normal, to where they upset each other, decisions are made and things happen, there's the happenings with the family and with the ML's sister. There's really only two threads (their relationship and the harassment story line) but they are both quite involved.
This is not a story where good people make only good decisions, be prepared to throw popcorn at the screen and shout "just be honest!" "argh no don't do that you fool!" - but that's ok because in the real world, people are flawed too.
The wheels do come off later, the time skip is unannounced and utterly confusing and contributes a lot to the problems in following the story in the last few episodes. The harassment story line is done a huge disservice by not having its conclusion covered properly too.
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Don't take it too seriously :)
Short: It's so over the top in places you can't mistake it for anything trying to take itself seriously. I loved the various characters and the general story,. I liked the little nods to other things like a scene from Parasite and it had lots of energy. It's not going to be top of your list, but it's fun and easy watching. I certainly enjoyed it. I don't think it was bad at all, it was silly and OTT but also lots of fun :)Detail:
Ok first I have to call out the little cameo moments that I thought were amusing as heck. In one, the father goes to be a driver for the ex-girlfriends family and takes a test drive - and it's ripped straight line for line out of Parasite, and also refers to how she had to fire the last guy because he stank from living in a basement (which the guy did in Parasite). In another, Ahn Chang Hwan turns up in the store, and immediately Dal Shik - played by Eum Moon Suk, who was also in Fiery Priest along with Ahn Chang Hwan - start doing a riff where Moon suk starts asking Chang Hwan to say "peter piper picked a peck of pickled peppers" just as his character did in Fiery Priest. Later, he re-assumes that role when he goes to help Saet Byul who visits someone that's trying to blackmail the store - he dresses up exactly as his character in Fiery Priest, including the voice etc. I love these little cross overs, they don't matter if you don't recognise them but they're a fun "aha!" moment when you do... though they perhaps tell me that I watch too much KDrama, I shall meditate on that point as I watch another KDrama...
Fiery Priest had the same Director, Lee Myung Woo - so you can kinda expect the same slightly OTT pace and style to everything.
I also noted the similarity between Ji Chang Wook's name (the ML) and Kang Ji Wook (the character name of the actor friend of Saet Byul's) :)
The main leads have some great chemistry, and I really liked the independence and strength they gave Saet Byul. I also liked that Ji Chang Wook's character knew when to back off and leave her to her own thoughts and come to her own decisions no matter how hard it was for him, he supported and encouraged when it was right and backed off when it was needed.
I think the take away message from this is about really understanding what's important, understanding what defines success for you - is it money? what is happiness? Once you understand that (and there's no point fooling yourself, only you lose out), you can make decisions you might not otherwise have made and find that happiness.
Second leads Seo Ye Hwa and Eum Moon Suk make for a very amusing pair as they go through turbulent times (probably more over the top than the main leads) but are also heartwarming in how things develop between them.
The drama has the usual tropes lined up almost numbered so you can call them out one at a time. Multiple Love triangles, the wicked girlfriends mum (well, ex-girlfriend but interfering none the less), misunderstanding after misunderstanding, you name it, it's probably there. But, as I said, it's kinda all hammed up a bit so rather than frustrating it becomes quite amusing more than anything.
Oh, and those endings where something key is about to happen and the screen freezes for it to conclude next episode, yeah, few of those, swore a couple of times at the TV for that :)
Probably not everyone's cup of tea but heck I enjoyed it :)
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A gem of a Legal drama
Short: A very clever legal drama, if you enjoy the legal dramas where it's all about winding your way through the "devil in the detail" clauses and exceptions, the machinations and maneuverings of the various characters as they try and achieve their goals and all on the legal stage then you will absolutely love this. I think it comes off really pretentious, but is perhaps justified through its quality. "We Are" sound track still going around and around in my head too!Detail:
I'll start by explaining the use of the word "pretentious" above. It was the first thing I was thinking as the drama starts, wow, this one is taking itself SUPER seriously... deep voices, stern comments, powerful people, important phrases and people reflecting sternly and importantly on the statue of Lady Justice. In the first episode especially, it's almost too much, I remember thinking "oh geez just get over yourself and get on with it". It does lighten up, but this tone persists throughout.
Now that i've finished it however, I think it earns the right. There's a lot of detail and effort gone into the story and some really clever twists and turns as the characters fight to gain the upper hand through the use of the law. It definitely feels like you're watching a chess game played by experts.
Characters are great, they have flaws and strengths. Sol-A was definitely my favourite - she's the complete underdog, the under achiever, she barely belongs in the university at all and is struggling to keep her grades high enough. But what she lacks there, she over compensates with her drive and passion and when the genie is unlocked proves that she at least as good as everyone else.
I thought that Sol-B's issues were also nicely done too, there's a common thread in many dramas about how the wealthy are often driven horribly by parents who place unreasonable demands on them, and I liked how this one was handled. It was a well played character and must have been quite challenging to both write and embody, she's cold and has flat expressions and constant tone but she's not uncaring or unfeeling and she's there for her fellow students and friends.
There was one scene that I thought just felt really off, and it was another "oh here we go taking ourselves too seriously again" moment, in the court, one of the characters is in the defense and the professor is her defense council. At a key moment he announces sternly and proudly, that he we will be resigning as council, shocks and gasps from the viewing gallery... and then he says he will allow his student (the defendant) to use her write to defend herself and proceeds to turn the whole thing into a lecture, even at one point rebuking the prosecution when they object to something by saying "in MY lectures, there are no objections", completely ignoring that this is actually a court room and a real proceeding... but it's ok because the judge also forgets that too, so we carry on with the "lecture" :) I mean it's not the end of the world, it worked for the character development very well, allowing him to empower the girl to find her strength and stand up for herself in a situation where she'd otherwise been on the receiving end of everyone elses manipulations.
Overall it's a superbly written story, if you like the legal maneuverings and careful interpretations of phrases, all that super detailed stuff that's the essence of the law, then you will find that in spades here. There's some great twists, great characters, fun moments too, and a nice sound track (the song "we are" is still going around in my head and will be for some time i'm sure!).
Definitely recommended.
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Rushed ending
Short: Really nice pace, really good characters, has some clear evolutions in the story making it feel like it's moving at a decent pace throughout... and then just stops. Totally feels to me like this 18 episode story was meant to be 20 and they cut it, so while it has an ending, it just isn't satisfying at all.Detail:
I was hooked on this one throughout, Kim Tae Hee and Joo Won are both excellent and they are surrounded by a great cast as well. The story has an interesting premise and moves along at a nice pace throughout so it was always interesting but i'm left at the end of it just feeling like the story ran off a cliff and suddenly stopped as soon as they could possibly do it - it's like the final seconds close out the loop, the [final thing] happens and boom - credits.
I always prefer a nice run-out to my stories, let's see them live their best lives now that they've worked hard to get there.
I don't really have anything else to be sore about on this drama, if it had a decently closed off ending this would have been at least a 9 if not a 10 for me but I hated that rushed ending.
To be clear, it DOES have an ending, it DOES have closure, it's just supremely rushed which undid the great work and pacing prior.
So i'm conflicted about recommending it as a watch - on the one hand, it's great fun and I really enjoyed watching all the characters, but on the other - if you're like me and you like the long run-out endings be prepared to be checking your netflix player to double check you didn't just run out of internet or something :)
I did note with some amusement that near the start, she transfers 2 million USD to him that needs a password to release that he'll get once he gets her out of the hospital... and at no point at all during this did she ever actually do that - it's like that whole thing was just forgotten about because it was inconvenient, instead he ended up relying on another source to help his sister (because that was more story-angst-ridden :) ).
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Very enjoyable :)
Short: Bullying in school, corporate and political crimes, all come to a head when the Mothers get involved. Good story with some fun moments, I enjoyed the ride and I was happy with the ending though it did seem like a couple of smaller points got skipped over it didn't spoil it. I don't think it'll be the best drama you ever watched, but it will be among the better ones :)Detail:
34 year old mother poses as 18 year old student and enrols in school, nobody bats an eyelid. As long as you can get over that, you'll do fine - and it does create some amusing moments such as when one of the students starts liking her :)
This covers a range of areas with similar themes whether it's abuse, bullying at school, political crimes, slush funds, conglomerate chairman crimes - it's got them all. It unravels itself bit by bit as the mother tries to do her best to protect her daughter.
One of my favourite characters was Han Gong Joo, played by Go Soo Hee - she has a completely different and always over the top fantasy princess dress on every single time she's in a new scene, everything's over the top for her but she's a solid character overall - it would have been easy to overdo it and for it to go wrong but I think her character was done very well indeed.
Difficult to pick particular issues with it, other than the base premise being a stretch (but aren't most?) - though the fake brick wall at the end was so badly done it was hilarious. It's good light hearted fun that plays on numerous old school formulae, enjoyable to watch but probably won't be at the top of your rewatch list (though... it won't be at the bottom either, for sure).
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Detail:
Have wanted to watch this one for a while and it recently popped up on Netflix so it was next in line and I've been hooked on it. As some other reviewers have said it does seem a bit slow at first but it's setting down a lot of stuff and building up the layers and story that it will unravel and explain later - stick with it, it does make sense and is worth it.
One of the reasons I was always drawn to this one is the "shy boss" thing, while I don't suffer from it as much any more I'm still fundamentally an introvert and find socialising very difficult. I have tried going to our company dinners here and I just find them too awkward and uncomfortable so I really related to the main character. I'm a Senior Producer and lead a team of something like 50 people - so there are more parallels there and again, while I'm nowhere near as bad as I used to be (I couldn't function in this role otherwise!) I thoroughly relate to the character. I thought Yoon Woo Jin did a fantastic job in the role. On the occasions he lets out a smile (drunk while looking at Ro Woon pulling a funny face in a photo someone sent him) he lights the screen up with the contrast from his normal expression.
Park Hye Soo places the FL, she's not an actress I've seen before but am definitely going to look out for more of her work, like Kim So Hyun she has a unique presence on screen that stands out.
This drama looks like it might just be a light fluffy romance, and there's certainly good elements of that throughout, but it covers some really heavy topics including Suicide and Self Harm as two major themes in the show (aside from the main characters anxiety issues). The opening scene is a woman jumping from a building to her death - so I feel it's really important to warn anyone ahead of time because such things can be an unpleasant shock. Throughout the story it progressively picks apart what happened, who is to blame, who is taking the blame and the impact it has on the family and everyone else around that person, it's not trivialised but instead examined throughout and thoroughly. I liked where it went, and I thought that Self Harm was dealt with well too. Both are difficult subjects.
The romance element is fantastic, these two actors absolutely nailed the on screen chemistry.
It's a great story, you need to give it a few episodes to lay its foundations before it will lock you in, and you need to just be aware of the main topics and make sure these are going to be ok for you to watch.
Music is very catchy too!
Definitely recommended!
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Detail:
First time i've seen either of the leads othre than Ha Seok Jin's brief role in Crash Landing on You - and enjoyed the pair of them very much. Go Ah Sung plays Eun Ho Won, who finds out that she only has a limited time left to live and decides to be a bit more blunt and frank - a really interesting character with an absolutely rock solid moral compass.
Weak bit - The other male lead, Seo Hyun, I just thought that his story was done a total disservice. There's a conflict with his dad, and a soured relationship with his brother because of it - and yet we never see any of this, so it's really difficult to really build up any appreciation for his character at all. At one point I was convinced he was going to turn out to be a sociopath or something but I think they were really aiming for something with more depth, they just did a really awful job of actually expressing it.
This story is about three people and their respective journeys, Kang Ho and his journey for independance from a super domineering mother and a father (again, that we never see) who rejects him. Ki Taek and his relationship with his girlfriend and his feelings of inadequacy about being out of work for so long. Ho Won who just wants the opportunity to prove herself and to devote her life to an organisation and the people she works with.
Some really fun moments of humour from everyone but often from Ho Won's little outbursts or reactions to things, or Yong Jae's reactions to various things as he's either over commanding of people or sucking up to his superiors.
Must admit there was at least one friendship or potentially relationship that I thought was going to go further, but the moments they did share were good to see.
Kot Bi, the directors secretary, she was fun and again her muttered under the breath retorts were amusing.
Overall, it's a fun story with some interesting characters. The overall message is about living for today, because if you make today happy then you'll be happy the rest of your life. We all spend too much time waiting for tomorrows happiness - but tomorrow never comes, so find your happiness today.
Worth a watch, it's fun.
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Detailed:
What did I just watch?! This was brilliant!
Three women living together in their thirties along with one of the ladies gay brother. Everyone has a story, sometimes the stories come together, sometimes they're quite heavily entwined, some times they're not. Whether it's one of the women who is facing severe grief following the loss of her partner, with moments that will likely have you reaching for the tissues, or another of the women and her hilarious relationship with her director, or the relationship one of them has with a co-worker.
Strong women, strong men. Great characters and brilliant performances by their actors.
The stories all go in different directions and the writer brilliantly crafts the tales to take those stories to places you probably didn't expect by the time they're done.
I really don't want to say too much and undo the writers fantastic work, you just have to watch it.
Very re-watchable too.
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Detailed:
Picked this one up because of Jun Ji Hyun whom I first watched in You Who came from the Stars (by the same writer) and wanted to see her in something different. The mermaid tale is an interesting topic that i've not seen in a KDrama before so that made it more interesting too, and then seeing it had Shin Hye Sun - well, sold.
On the whole I enjoyed it and I didn't have any doubts about continuing to watch it to completion - but - I had some issues with it...
I'm still trying to work out how well the two leads chemistry worked... some times there were sparks, other times not, it just wasn't consistent.
I really liked the links back and forth between the past lives and the current ones, it provided some interesting insights and background and a variety of settings to see the characters in, both in terms of the parallels and differences.
I really wished that the FL had some kind of other goal in mind, but as it was, she comes to the surface and is completely naive and inexperienced which leads to some funny scenes - but sets the scene for the ML to refer to her as his "dummy" the entire story. Now, there are many things that happen in the show that could be seen as just "hey thats fine, it's cute" or not - so there's a lot of interpretation to be had on the "strength" of the FL but i'm gonna go and just say - I don't think she was very strong at all! - constantly chasing around after the guy working out what to do to get the guy - I dunno, didn't feel like the best message. It's a relatively minor itch for me on the overall show (which, as I said, I enjoyed) but an itch never the less.
Now... Shin Hye Sun's character Cha Shi Ah was really good - your understanding of Shi-Ah changes and develops through the story and her oddball relationship with Tae-Oh is brilliant I honestly was looking out for the scenes with these two more than anything else some times.
There's baddies too, in the shape of the "Wicked Stepmother" which I guess has to be there and was ok, but wasn't that exciting for me really.
Sound track was good, really liked some of the tracks that are now ear-worms.
It's a good story but I don't rate it up there with some of the other works by this screenwriter, which include Crash Landing on You and You Who Came from the Stars, two of my favourite dramas. It's just "normal" good :)
The little girl that she meets early on and meets up again with numerous times... wish they'd tied that one up in a nice bow at the end, felt it just needed a moment "more", just as she did with the fashion-lady.
FYI On Viki, this shows up as:
Episode 0 - which is the special, DONT watch this first even though its the first thing they dish up.
Episodes 1-20 - this is the drama, watch this.
Episodes 21 and 22 - these are directors cuts of episodes 1 and 2. Watch these after if you wish :)
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Detail:
It's Hong Sisters so... does it need more description? :)
Gong Hyo-Jin is the main in this one for me, her character has the ability to see ghosts and ever since it started she's been terrified by their sight and unable to sleep properly or live in the world properly. When she discovers the So Ji-Sub's character has the ability to make the ghost world temporarily go away when she touches him, and finds that he needs to hear from a dead girlfriend to find out what happened in his past - the two are forced to spend time together.
What results are some comic escapades as the two are from such completely different worlds as those worlds collide, and hard!
There are numerous stories about how she is able to help the living and the dead through her ability to communicate with them, and she gains confidence in doing so as she realises she can run to Ji-Sub's character if it gets too much.
The sound track on this one is absolutely fantastic, numerous songs on here that make my playlist now!
Definitely worth the watch!
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Visual effects are quite interesting as Lee Ahn uses his ability and they fade the screen between the various memories he's seeing.
Acting - I wasn't totally convinced by Lee Ahn's character, though it wasn't bad at all, just something felt a bit weak in the performance. I thought Jae In was great, and she had some fantastic moments. Sung Mo was brilliant, I found it hard to read him and that gave me some clues as to where his character was heading but even then it wasn't quite 100% - very nicely done.
The little side thing that goes on between Dae Bong and So-Hyun didn't get enough time for me, I thought that was interesting and they only dipped into it occasionally and briefly. It was a good opportunity to expand more on Lee Ahn's best friend and actually put some of the story of him winning So-Hyun over in. It would have added some light moments in between what is otherwise a pretty heavy story. That said, what was in there was good.
Overall I really enjoyed the story, thought the actors did generally a great job and definitely glad to have watched it. The nature of it being a mystery however does make it less interesting to watch a second time as all the mystery is now gone though a second viewing would be interesting to see what clues I missed in the first viewing perhaps.
There's some good surprises and twists in this one - don't let the fact that there are some potential twists that are much more obvious trick you into thinking this one is easily predictable. Definitely worth a watch.
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I thought the plot line on this one was really unusual, the idea of someone changing their bodies entirely was an interesting concept. Se-Gye learns to use her monthly predicament to help people and there are some really nice scenes where she's able to use her acting, her unique placement to help and empathy to make a difference to a few peoples lives. There are also some amusing interactions and a few downright hilarious moments.
General path of the story is a positive one as the two get to know each other and then get closer. There is a tough "bad bit" but it's not really *quite* in the "stupid breakup" category for me, but the cause of the whole thing was an really interesting twist so I felt it added rather than detracted from the story overall.
Actors - where to start...
Seo Hyun Jin is probably one of my new favourite actresses in the kdrama scene, having seen her in this and "Another Miss Oh" previously I find her exceptionally good, and, I don't know, there's something about her voice... I could listen to it for hours :)
Lee Min Ki - initially I was a bit disappointed because the character seems to be just a similar role to the one in "Because this is my first life" - flat, emotionally repressed, stiff. I warmed to the character though and it's definitely appropriate for the story, someone who has no ability to recognise faces is going to have an exceptionally tough time with friendships let alone anything more - so I suspect most end up just closing themselves off. As the story progresses though there are some amazing moments where he's laughing with joy and they were brought that much more to life because of the flatness of the character previously. So, ultimately, yes, very good.
Lee Da Hee - I think Da-Hee is fantastic in everything she does but I felt there was a mismatch in her character - she's the president of an airline, she's pitched as a scary kick-ass lady, but too often she comes across as a weaker character than that. Her story as she opens up to Eun-Ho however was really nice and parallelled Do-Jae's story in that she's just as cold (albeit for different reasons) and this is her warming up and realising she's allowed to enjoy life too.
Direction - I mentioned earlier i'd watched this one after "Another Miss Oh" - and as I was watching it I kept thinking, wow, the direction of this is so familiar... turns out it's the same director, Song Hyun Wook. It made it feel comfortable and familiar having enjoyed Miss-Oh.
Soundtrack was great, looking forward to listening to it in more detail later.
Lastly - just as an aside really, in one of the opening moments there's an awards ceremony, if you've watched miss-oh you should hopefully recognise some of the cast from it flanking Seo Hyun Jin in the audience, in particular Ye Ji Won and Lee Jae Yoon.
Definitely on my re-watch list!
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That was one of the big things for me, because i'm a firm believer that every strong relationship has to have the foundation of a strong friendship, love will wave up and down over time and circumstances but friendship is the glue that keeps everything together.
The journey that the couple take as they progress from friendship through to romance is very warming and fun to watch, there's lots of funny moments to enjoy from all four of the group.
The other couple are good and are going through a different kind of challenge, once you've been together for a long time it's easy for a relationship to feel stale, or for one or both to feel that things haven't moved the way that they'd hoped and thus feel responsible or diminished because of it. It's all nonsense of course, because at the end of the day as long as you both still love and care for each other - what house you live in and what car you drive, what role you have at work and how much you earn, that's all just background noise but people let it get in the way, and that's what's presented with this couple.
There's a secondary story that comes in from the sidelines with the new landlord / building owner which was really nice but I won't go any further into that - keeps you guessing all the way through though.
If I had a beef with the story it's towards the ending, without going into any spoilery detail, essentially an ultimatum is issued, a choice is made and consequences occur - fair enough. But then a bit later, declaration to reverse that choice is made, a different path is taken - and then it's all doubled back on, but this time, apparently it doesn't matter and is glossed over. That was the only bit that really fell apart for me in the story though I can overlook it for what was otherwise 16 episodes of glorious fun to watch.
Definitely recommended.
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