This review may contain spoilers
No proper relief for 11 episodes of mental fatigue
*** This review has spoilers ahead. ***I really liked this drama. I was waiting all week for the last episode. When it finally dropped I was so excited, but also anxious because i didn't know how it would all work out in the end. I wanted everyone to have their happy ending.
But now I prefer it was a sad ending with better execution rather than a rushed, fluffy, bubbly happy ending for everyone, and I say that as someone who almost always checks dramas for happy endings before even starting them.
Maybe it's just me but the hospital scene in the last episode, after ml wakes up, felt too lazy and bland. That scene should have been the most complicated and delicate scene of the whole drama. We should have seen more of what was happening in ml's head as he saw her sleeping next to him. We should have seen how he handles the aftermath of that surgery. There was so much potential there. Instead we got a lazy "I love you".
The pain and mental fatigue we carried together with the characters throughout the drama was not properly handled, and a happy ending was thrown at us like a bone at a dog.
Also the COO's guilt did not make sense. That whole romance added nothing to the story to be honest.
That being said, the acting was amazing. Especially the two leads did a great job.
Those 11 and a half episodes were so good I can't even bring myself to give this drama a low score. Its such shame though. Could have been a 10/10.
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I felt seen.
As someone who went through self-isolation, self-pity and self-hatred multiple times (and unfortunately will keep going through this vicious cycle at least once a year) this drama and the writing made me feel seen and undersood.For someone who hates themselves as much as we do, things like criticizing what we're doing (or not doing), asking us about our plans for future, telling us to just change the way we see the world and other things like that doesn't help at all. and believe me when i say this: no one is harsher on us than we are.
Actually getting yelled at and being called useless is comfortable for us since we are trying to punish ourselves anyways. It's familiar because we tell ourselves the exact same things whenever we are alone with our thoughts, and it's a lot easier than having to face our problems and our selves.
The attention and worry of our loved ones (if we are lucky enough to have people who care about us) becomes a burden and an additional source of stress and anxiety, which we try to avoid as we already have too much on our plate. Hence the isolation.
The invisible barriers that we face, sometimes as simple as getting out of bed yet so difficult to achieve, are not considered real or acknowledged. It's " just all in our heads". Well I guess that statement isn't wrong.
I was lucky enough to be able to go back to a somewhat normal, functional life and I am so grateful for that. And don't get me wrong, I'm fully aware that this ... well ... situation ... is in fact an excuse for me that helps me avoid the effort it takes to change myself for the better and face the problems in my life. But it doesn't make it any easier to overcome.
What helped me was in fact one friend. Just one friend who undertood what I was going through because she was going through the same thing. What I felt watching this drama, specially when we see what Mi-Jae went through in her room, gave me the familiar feeling of when i was venting to that one friend. This is why this drama is special for me.
The acting is great. The whole cast did a great job, specially the main leads. However in my opinion Kim Sun-Young who played the role of male lead's mother is the actress who shines the brightest. Her performance in episode 11 is unforgettable and truly great. I hope all the best for her.
I do want to mention this was not a comfortable or easy watch for me. I tend to start dramas after they are finished, but I still had to go back and forth between this drama and other, more lighthearted dramas.
Thanks for reading this long review.
If you are going through the same problems I did, feel free to hit me up. I do not have a solution, but maybe I can help you the way my friend helped me. I am here if you just open that door.
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