Njoks

Had Me Hooked Throughout!

I really liked how the story built from the start. The writers did a good job of balancing suspense and reveals to continuously reward you with knowledge even as they kept you asking questions.

I wasn't crazy invested in the romance part when it got too cliche, but I'm glad that I didn't fully clock that it would be a romance for a good part of the beginning because my brain was like, "Yes, sibling bonding affection." I honestly would have preferred a sibling-esque connection between the main characters throughout because that would've been pretty fresh and interesting to watch and would've still retained that "I'm dedicated to you" aura. But the romance plot wasn't bad, though they did overdramatize some moments they had together in a way that didn't actually add to the romance plot.

Aside from that, I thoroughly enjoyed the multitude of stories happening concurrently. I was super invested in RL trying to piece things together and bits of information were planted very strategically to set up for later episodes. In this way, things didn't feel out of place when they occurred (like the arsenic poisoning plotline). Another thing I appreciated was the lack of hesitation on the part of our ML when it came to action scenes. Bro was here to kill and ask questions later, and I am soooo glad we had that because I get frustrated when people hesitate just so the plot can have more dramatic betrayal moments and stuff. ML was on it and had some awesome fight choreo, too.

Finally, the ending bits definitely confused me a bit because there were multiple groups of soldiers fighting and I lost track of whose soldiers they were. And one plotline that wasn't properly wrapped up was who Kkotnim's boss was (considering she would mention orders from above and such). Like, it couldn't have been the shaman because she seemed to be on a similar level of authority in the organization, so who was above Kkotnim and her brother? Where did she even get a gun?

Mini-rant incoming: Mu jin is pathetic and deserved to die! No mental redemption for a person who was watching kids get tortured and just moving on with his life without questioning it. Saving Jae Yi doesn't save his blatant character morality flaws.

But honestly, I genuinely enjoyed the show as a whole and really loved the one song from it called Burning Petals (sets an epic ambience).

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A Beautiful Show for Book Peeps

I am a writer and a reader, so the storyline of this show touched me deeply. Seeing all these people bonding over a love for books as they discovered a love for each other made me all warm inside. It's probably my favorite drama right now. I never grew tired of it.

Practically, the pacing was rather good, especially when it came to introducing and exploring the stories of side characters. They all felt like real people with realistic lives that were not always over-the-top, allowing you to relate to them. Of course, the chemistry between the main two was to die for (and I died for it with every little look they exchanged), so that was a strong glue that held the show together. Basically...

I loved it! I loved it! I loved it!

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An Surprisingly Intriguing Watch

I didn't expect this movie to be as enjoyable as it was, so I was pleasantly surprised. Shin Hye-sun never disappoints with her acting, and it was impeccable here. The female cop was also a really good actress and I enjoyed most of the scenes she was in. What took the show down for me was the male lead. His acting felt off sometimes for me and wasn't really engaging, though that may just have been the weird way in which his character was written. It felt like it was trying and failing to be Joe from You (more awkward and less creepy). That was my main issue. Aside from that, I enjoyed how the story was written and executed as well as the messaging that came through at the end.

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