Meari21

First of all, I was responding to the original poster, not you. They seem to claim that people who like this drama have no taste and are only jumping on the bandwagon. My response to you is on the thread you started yourself. And I didn't say you should keep your opinion to yourself. If you don't want people responding or disagreeing with you, then why put your comment on this thread of all places? People can respect your opinion and still argue with you since that's what this platform is for, for discussion. You mentioned Rurouni Kenshin and said it's great and criticize this for having zero logic when those movies are far from perfect either. How do you explain Kenshin being able to move as fast as lightning and flying all over the place like in some wuxia drama if it's supposed to be a grounded story based on Japanese history? Do you find logic and realism in the hairstyles and costumes they wear? My argument is that these types of dramas are not supposed to have realistic fights or follow the rules of physics. The story is up for debate. Some may find logic in the things you pointed out, but I won't bother trying to explain that here because that's not the reason I watched this for. You expect it to be like Weak Hero Class 1 simply because they're both based on a webtoon/manhwa, but they're not from the same genre. This one has always been more lighthearted in tone and sillier in nature. It's like comparing Mashle and Frieren just because they're both fantasy stories. And the reason why it has a high rating, I already covered that in my response to your other comment.

Just because other people's preferences don't align with yours, doesn't mean they have trashy tastes and yours is classy. And no, it's not the anime-type or coolness factor as you would say it that makes people gravitate towards it. It's the fact that it's a bingeable fun watch with endearing characters, almost zero angst, inspiring stories and dialogues, wholesome themes about friendship and education, and yes, flashy stylistic fight scenes. Sure, it's formulaic, but then so is pop music and yet some of the best songs are actually pop. Some people just want escapist entertainment without the melodrama or the reality bites pain that you often get from dramas with grounded and darker tones. And some people (like me) just want to be reminded of what it was like to be in high school and struggling with their education but overcoming these challenges together with their close circle of friends. Nothing wrong with that. Plus, this genre is not a Gen Z type of thing. It has been around since the 80's. J-dramas, most likely, started this genre when they started adapting manga to live action. You're entitled to your own opinion, of course. If it's not for you, it's not for you. I just wanted to respond to some of the things you pointed out.

This is the type of drama where you're not supposed to take things too seriously. It's a wacky, quirky, and anime-ish type of drama. From the get-go you can tell by the tone that it's going to be over-the-top and you'd have to suspend your disbelief, even throw logic out the door. If you believed it was going to be any different, then that's on you. Yoon Gamin is supposed to be like a superhero character here, he was written as such, thus he is portrayed as such. But he is more than just some meathead idiot, he was born to a celebrated genius and people expected him to take after his father. That kind of thing can traumatize a kid and yet he pushes on. His main motivation in life is to become smarter, but he's only good at one thing, fighting. Yes, he's a bit one-dimensional, but then so are shonen characters like Luffy and Naruto. He was patterned after them, after all. If you want a grounded and highly logical drama, then this type of show just isn't for you. You should stay away from shonen anime too because you'll probably nitpick the hell out of it.

And oh, I read your other comment about Joy of Life and Nirvana in Fire. I watched those two dramas and yes, I would think of them as epic series with excellent acting and close to perfect writing (I do have some beefs with the writing, though. I tend to be more critical when it comes to these more serious dramas because I expect so much more from them). But you have to understand that these are different genres targeted at different audiences. I have an ecclectic taste in dramas and movies so I may be one of the exceptions. I adjust my expectations according to the genre or nature of the content. Those C-dramas are political in nature with far more serious tones, and they are mainly aimed at an older and more discerning audience, so comparing this drama to those is just plain absurd. The ratings are judged by its audience. I doubt there are many people like me who loved Nirvana In Fire would also enjoy Study Group or even check it out. Study Group has a 9 rating because majority of its audience enjoyed it and think highly of it. If everyone on this site watched the drama and rated it, the score would considerably go down because I doubt this would be everyone's cup of tea. If everyone on MDL checked out Nirvana In Fire, many would probably drop it or give it lower ratings also because it's not their type of drama. Talking about these ratings like they apply to the general audience is like thinking that if a movie's Rotten Tomatoes score is 100%, it's immediately great even though there's only one review.

It's excellent. One of the best J-dramas I've seen.

The opening theme alone is very old school rap, a cross between early 90's gangsta rap and late 90's Eminem. Dope!

It depends on the genre of the webtoon/manhwa. Weak Hero Class 1 has a more serious tone. This is more lighthearted and in the same vein as Tokyo Revengers and Windbreaker, which are shonen manga. I imagine if they ever make a live action adaptation of Windbreaker, it would be a lot like this. Besides, it's a stylistic choice of the director so it will never be for everyone. As an anime fan, I actually enjoyed this a lot. If the Chinese can make an anime-coded C-drama in I Am Nobody, why can't the Koreans do the same?

Just got done watching this. Awesome short series, just an all-around fun and endearing K-drama. Over-the-top cool fight scenes, quirky characters, heartwarming emotional beats, and a lovely message about friendship, dreams, and the value of good education. "The moment people stop learning is when they die." If there's a season 2, you can bet your bottom dollar that I'll watch it too. Hope Hwang Minhyun will be considered for Solo Leveling.

As a fan of both Solo Leveling and Study Group, I hope they cast him as Sung Jinwoo in the live action K-drama version. I think he can pull off both the weak and cutesy Jinwoo and the hot and badass Jinwoo. Besides, his stunts in Study Group have convinced me he'd be perfect for the role.

I wasn't talking about K-drama fans but characters in the drama and Korean viewers in general. South Korea is still largely a conservative country where people live with their parents until they get married or even long after they're married. And living with partners is still frowned upon by older generations. That is why most people who choose to live with their partners are pressured to get married eventually. This is true in most Asian countries as well. People in Asia generally don't mature as fast as those in western countries. After talking to my Korean friends and acquaintances, a number of Koreans indeed found the relationship off-putting. It was quite controversial even. The only reason others didn't was because the actress who played the character was in her 20s at that time. If it had been played by an actual 18-year-old, they would've been grossed out by it. And FYI, I don't approve of much younger actors being paired with middle-aged actresses either.

Same here. Discounting the fact that the guy is hundreds of years older than her, Gong Yu looks like he's in his late 30's in this drama and the girl looks like one of my Korean students who was 16 at that time. Not to mention that even though they say that the girl is 19 years old, she's actually only 17-18 because Koreans normally use their nominal age. I found it weird that nobody thought it was scandalous for a teenage girl to live with a grown man, let alone have a relationship with him. I believe some K-netizens pointed this out as well and were grossed out by it. Her being a damsel in distress who just relied on a man to take care of her also didn't sit well with the feminists there. I watched this years ago and I remember skipping most of the scenes and just focused on the bromance between the Goblin and the Grim Reaper. I only read the episode summaries to understand the story.

I just started rewatching this because when I first saw it, I was literally dozing off while watching the first few episodes, so I didn't fully appreciate it then. I realized it was only because all the accounting and math calculations bored me. My brain normally shuts down when math is concerned. Suffice to say, math has never been my strong suit. lol But when it picked up around the fifth episode, I was in for a ride. I still think of this drama very fondly and it's one of my favorite C-dramas ever. I figured it's time for me to get to know Jia Mo all over again.

I was responding to the other commenter. They were talking about being hesitant to watch medical K-dramas because of the inaccuracies. As for your concern, that's more for dramatic purposes. I can suspend my disbelief and forgive those depending on what the writers are trying to get at by including those scenes.

It was filmed last year but the drama's timeline is around 2013-2016 because it's based on the real-life accomplishments of Dr. Lee Guk Jong, who is a celebrated trauma surgeon that pushed for the advancement of trauma centers in Korea. He's considered a legend in that field and he almost singlehandedly changed how hospitals handle emergency cases there. The writer of the original webtoon was a medical specialist who wrote this story to honor Dr. Lee. Dr. Lee accomplished these feats around that time, so they chose to follow that timeline, hence the old iPhone models.

His obsession with Bai Shou makes sense, though. He is Mo Li after all. He made himself believe it was her who sent those letters, he wanted it to be her so badly, just like Mo Li wanted to believe Xingyue would actually be his.

It has more to do with their culture. In Korea, many people become doctors simply because it's a white collar job and considered one of the top professions, so it's not impossible for some doctors to just treat their jobs as a source of income and social status, nothing more. Also, sometimes hospital politics and disillusionment in the system make them lose interest in their jobs and just go with the flow, just like what happened with their hospital director, who actually happened to be Dr. Baek's hero and a hardworking doctor who refused to give up on his patients when he was younger. As for the egotistic doctors in this drama (there are a lot of them), I don't find it unrealistic either. Korea is a patriarchal society where men are considered superior and there's a specific hierarchy that people follow. Older generations, especially their Gen X'ers and boomers are quite conservative and very demanding. I know because I've been working for Korean companies for 15 years and I've had typical ajusshi bosses that would literally force you to go out and drink with them after work and refusing to do so was considered insubordination and could cost you your job. They were often loud, crass, and extremely rude, especially when drunk or angry. I'm not saying all Koreans are like this because I have many Korean friends who aren't like that, but this is the reality that they have to live with. It's not uncommon for someone to encounter an awfully rude and bossy (and even racist) ajusshi/ajumma or haraboji/harmeoni.

The plot synopsis doesn't remind me of DOTS either. Maybe the vibes are similar?

I just came here to check up on how this drama is going so far by reading the early reviews and comments. This is on my to-watch list but I haven't gotten to it yet as I've been busy with work and juggling a couple of dramas right now. I am shocked to read these negative comments. What's going on?! Why is this being compared to Descendants of the Sun?

Actually, one of the commenters here is a trauma surgeon and they said that it's pretty close to reality. There are probably some fantastical elements for theatrical and comedic purposes but the cases are plausible and some trauma surgeons have indeed performed those feats. The author of the webtoon from which this drama was based on is a medical practitioner himself. His main character, Dr. Baek, is based on a real-life trauma surgeon who championed trauma centers in South Korea. His name is Dr. Lee and he's considered a legend in his field according to my Korean friend who's an ER nurse in Seoul. Most of the major plot points featured in the drama actually happened in real life. As for the mercenary doctors angle, it's also possible since many of these doctors are deployed overseas to work in military zones. And the fact that Korean males usually undergo mandatory military training for three years, they're already skilled in weaponry and war tactics so it's not improbable for Korean male doctors to work as medics for mercenary organizations abroad. I suppose they could've toned down the comedic and comic book aspects to make the drama more believable but that's most likely a stylistic choice so I don't mind it so much.

So my friend was right. Interesting. I think the real-life trauma surgeon's last name is Lee. Forgot his first name. Apparently, he accomplished all this more than ten years ago back when helicopters were not as common and trauma centers weren't seen as vital in Korea as they are now.

I meant the photo. They have strict requirements on this site if you want to change the actors' profile pictures. My submissions kept getting rejected because the photos didn't meet their standards in terms of size, clarity, appearance, etc. I'm glad they finally approved a new one after so long.