DramaHeroine

This is the third version of this story I've seen so far. (First being the Taiwanese and second the Korean.) I can't say that I have a favorite as each version has things I like and things I don't, but I think I can say that this is probably the easiest version of the three to get through. The Taiwanese version was my first ever drama, and it holds a very special place in my heart, but I absolutely cannot get myself through it again. (And I tried.) It's biggest flaw is it drags the main conflict out (the male lead trying to have his cake and eat it too) far longer than necessary, and I'm enough of a drama veteran now to not put up with that anymore if I don't want to. And while the Korean version is a much lighter, easier version to watch than the Taiwanese, it still pulls a trope or two at some really unnecessary moments (amnesia is thy name) that pulled down the middle part quite unfairly (I think it might have received an extension so they were trying to fill time). This version, however, while flawed in it's own right (and I will get to that in a moment), is still an easier viewing experience, and the main reason for that is that this drama just gets to the damn point.

The first couple episodes serve as a nice little diversion from the source material. It's still the same basic story, but they tone down some of the more outlandish aspects and make how the two leads end up meeting and 'being' together much more believable. (As believable as it can be with this sort of set up.) Of course, once you're 3 or 4 episodes in, it becomes a true remake, losing some of that believability as you go along, but I also went in knowing what sort of story this was and wanting some of that unbelievability, so that never bothered me.

The only part of the drama that had me scratching my head is the way the writers chose to deal with the abortion consent form in the final ep. I understand Aya deciding to leave after seeing it and being told it's from him and thinking about all she's been through and just not wanting to do it anymore. It makes absolute sense for her to want to heal and move on and become a braver, more confident version of herself. I even understand Kei letting her go without trying to convince her to stay or offering any sort of apology, because he feels guilty over how he's treated her and knows he has no right to hold her back or maybe even speak on his behalf. He didn't give her that form, but he didn't exactly give her much reason to believe he wouldn't have. What I don't understood is him letting her go without clearing up the misunderstanding about the form. I get feeling like you've hurt someone so much that you have no right to say or do anything anymore, but letting them continue to think you did something that horrendous to them when you didn't makes no sense. Take ownership for your choices, but don't take ownership of someone else's.

And this is where we come to the ultimate flaw of this version. The pacing is way too fast. All of the key moments are done the right way. The accidental 'trist' on the boat, stopping the abortion, Kei and Anna Actually breaking up, the terrible accident, crafting a logical misunderstanding through which the leads are pushed apart, it's all done as it should be. It's just building up these characters and their relationships with each other and filling in all of the gaps In-Between all of the key moments that is not done well. Not really done much at all, in fact. When it's all said and done, I genuinely liked the leads together, and I wanted them to fall for each other, even believed that they had by the end. But we got to see so very little of them actually falling and getting to know one another and having those little moments, and that really hampered the story. I could quibble some more over the issues around the abortion form, but it's this right here that ultimately lowers this versions rating for me. If there had been more build up to their relationship, I could have completely forgiven the writing misstep around the form, but there wasn't, so I can't.

This is very much the most fluff, lighthearted version of this story (minus possibly the Thai version, which I have not seen and can not speak on) mainly due to it's pacing, so if you want to check out this story but don't want a lot of angst, then this is definitely the version for you (followed by the Korean version). It was apparently quite popular in Japan, and I can see why.

Oh, and for anyone reading who's confused by the ending and wondering why I haven't addressed it in this review and if there's going to be a second season to finish the story, I didn't address it because I got caught up in crafting all of my points and forgot to even mention the strangely open-ended ending, but for your answer as to whether there will be a second season, it seems likely there will be as this was advertised in Japan as only telling half of the story, and it has apparently been quite popular, popular enough to warrant another season to tie everything up.

And now any of you who are reading this review in the distant future will most likely be very confused because there will probably already be a second season out at that point and everyone will have forgotten that us western drama viewers had no idea why this drama ended the way it did and now I'm rambling for no reason so have a nice life and thanks for all the fish.

Links to my reviews for the other versions:

https://kisskh.at/profile/OhSoEnthusiastic/review/22006

https://kisskh.at/profile/OhSoEnthusiastic/review/22004

https://kisskh.at/profile/OhSoEnthusiastic/reviews/274737

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What a wasted opportunity for bromance and female friendship and a crazy, amnesiatic murderer.

Everything the writers promised, they ended up letting us down on. The romance was infuriating/incredibly boring. Instead of exploring the idea of friendship and betrayal and forgiveness, we just walked in a circle for 20 episodes. (I REFUSE TO SAY IT WAS 40 BECAUSE THIS NEW NUMBERING SYSTEM IS STUPID!!!!) And the one and only time I've actually been Excited to see amnesia in a drama (wait. it's not one of our leads who gets amnesia? it's...the murderer?! what a fascinating idea. yes please!)...it turned out to be basically a non plot-point. Why'd they even try to market the story around it if it was going to be that insignificant???

I hate this drama. I hate it with every fiber of my being. My actual rating is negative 100.

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It's taken me a while to finally sit down and write a review for this drama, which I guess makes sense, because it took me awhile to finish watching the drama. I think this is a fairly popular drama, and I personally liked a lot of things about it. But there is one reason (well, two problems that compile together to make one big reason) you might not want to watch this drama. I'm not trying to discourage anyone from watching it, because I think I Don't Love You Yet has a lot to make it worth watching. But this one reason creates a lot of frustration when watching, and it's a common complaint about the drama even by those who love it, so I'm just going to lay it out for you and let you make up your mind from there.

If you hate the Love Octopus (my term for love triangles/squares/hexagons/trapeziums/parallelograms/the part of the drama that so often sends you into spiraling despair) ...you will not like this drama. There is a love square, and one side is particularly infuriating. The first half of the drama is fine. The second female lead provides moments of irritation in her role as part of the love square, but she's more like a fly that's gotten inside your house and likes to buzz around your head every so often then a wasp/bee that's actively trying to sting you to death. But the second half of the drama spends an obnoxiously long time in the Love Octopi territory with the worst example of an 'ex comes back' trope I think I have ever seen. Yes, the female leads ex-boyfriend comes back, and he is the Literal. WORST. He is so incredibly controlling of the female leads life when he's around, trying to manipulate and maneuver her to suit his own desires with no regard to her wants or needs. He's basically the stereotypical male lead jerk but who never grows or changes except until the Very End, and by that point, it's completely unbelievable seeing him as a nice guy and it would have been better if the writers had left him a jerk.

That's enough of a problem for the story on its own, but it unfortunately leads to a separate problem that makes the Love Square even more difficult to bear. Once the ex-boyfriend returns, the female lead becomes (almost) unendurably frustrating. I guess I can't say it's she's truly unendurable, because I obviously did endure it in order to finish the drama, but the female lead puts up with a lot of nonsense from a guy who once utterly wrecked her and whom she may not even be in love with anymore. He was incredibly selfish when they were first together, then he broke her heart out of nowhere disappearing into the night to go focus on thinking only about himself some more, and since then, the female lead has created a life for herself including a career she loves and a dawning recognition of her feelings for her best friend. And yet, Mr. Attack Wasp comes back, and we're supposed to believe that what they once had together is so valuable she would be willing to overlook his egregious behavior.

Maybe this could have worked if I had been able to relate to the female lead and her complicated feelings for this man. Old relationships like theirs can be very hard to get over, and even years later, you can still experience the pangs of hurt and disappointment and pining. But the female lead is already a bit of a frustrating character without the added torture of her terrible ex. The truth is, she is very self-involved. She's not mean or demanding or spiteful or anything like that. But she's very clearly been ignoring the poor male leads feelings for her for a long time, and truthfully, she's kind of taken advantage of those feelings. That and it's just patently obvious that she shouldn't get back together with her ex and there's no strong feeling on her part to suggest she would even want to to begin with.

So if you hate the Love Octopus, if you hate when the ex-boyfriend/girlfriend comes back, if you hate when one of the leads is a little too self-involved, you will definitely hate those things here. The reason, however, I still say this drama may be worth watching, is because I like literally everything else about it. There's no denying the actors are basically perfect for their roles, and even in the face of the female leads selfishness, I like both of the leads and I like them Together. I also think the finale is basically perfect, and watching it Almost erased my previous frustration with the story. Almost.

But the Love Octopus puts in a very valiant effort at strangling the life out of the story, and it had no right to do that.

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I've watched enough dramas in my life at this point to know that they have a habit of falling apart, and the longer they are, the more chance there is of that happening. It's part of why I've always avoided longer dramas. I can't handle that level of investment if it's all just going to end in disappointment. I was wary going into Legally Romance, as 33 eps is way longer than what I typically am willing to watch. (16 or less is what I tend to stick with.) And at various points while watching, I was unsure how well the writers would be able to handle the story they had created. There are a lot of moving parts to this drama and a lot of elements that have to be done just right for the story to succeed.

And I'm happy to say that not only does Legally Romance succeed, it's also a damn good drama. Consistent from start to finish with absolutely wonderful characters, a use of law that actually makes sense (I mean, I understood the things they said, so that's already a plus), a very moving plotline involving family and loss and grief, two SWOONworthy romances, literally laugh-out-loud comedy, and so much cute I feel like the little girl and her stuffed animal from Despicable Me, I really can't offer up any complaints. I was unsure how they were going to make the transition from Qian Wei's dream world back to her real-life, as we spent a really long time in her dream-world, and if the story were going to fall apart somewhere that would definitely be the place for it to happen. Thankfully, they handled the transition very well, and you don't feel like you're suddenly watching a different drama.

I will admit that once we were brought back into the modern day, non-dream world, I had to make more of a conscious effort to stay invested in the story. The dream-world and the real world have very intentionally different tones, and I LOVED the tone of her dream-world. Qian Wei's dream-world is very colorful and fun and almost straight comedy. There's a lot of cute bickering and romantic development and character development and situational comedy, and it's all just so deliciously pleasant to watch. Her modern-day life, however, is a lot heavier with a lot of focus on law/business machinations, Qian Wei having to reckon with the fact that her dream world was only a dream world and her real-life could use some TLC, and some genuinely emotionally wrought situations. I do prefer Qian Wei's dream-world, but only because it was just so much fun. Both parts of the story are equally compelling and tightly plotted/written, and my preference is just that, a preference.

Speaking of law, it really felt like the laws they referenced and discussed were real laws in China. Whether they are actually followed or enforced is another matter, but they were realistic enough for me think the writers might have consulted with actual Chinese lawyers. I also couldn't help but wonder if the writers were subtly trying to raise Chinese citizens awareness to Chinese law, something I really appreciate if it's true.

And one last note, but I'm very surprised this drama got by the Chinese censors. There were so many references to foreign pop cultures, even a Japanese pop culture reference! I don't know how the writers got away with it, but they were really fun little asides, and I'm glad they put them in.

This is definitely a 10 out of 10 drama, and if you're curious to check it out, I would highly recommend.

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This is one of those dramas that is pleasant enough but somewhat unnecessary at the same time and doesn't really leave much of a lasting impression when it's done.

First and foremost, the romance is meh for me. It progressed unnaturally quick in the first half and then became kind of boring in the second. It's not that I dislike the pairing. They're both generally likable characters and fairly cute when they're together. I just never really understood what it was that made them like each other which in turn made the romance feel bland. Their romance has a really promising start, but in the end, it just didn't have much substance.

I really enjoyed everything to do with the magazine office. Chief Editor makes some hairbrained decisions early on that would Not be successful in real life yet inexplicably are in the drama, but that withstanding, seeing the inner workings of a magazine was fun and a little bit fascinating. I was consistently invested in seeing Miyavi, and the people who worked on it, be successful. The magazine team felt like a real team that really cared about doing a good job, and I appreciated (most) every member. I greatly enjoyed seeing the female lead come into her own as the Chief Editor's assistant, learning to find joy in a job well done and even desiring to improve herself. And the Chief Editor herself is a really compelling, and impressive, character.

The drama's messaging on whether you should follow your dreams or not (or if you should even be so worried about having one) is somewhat incoherent, however. It makes an attempt at conveying to the audience that it's okay to have a simple, average life, and you don't have to be chasing some sort of 'dream' in order to be happy and fulfilled, but then it...kind of betrays that message?

Considering how hyper-obsessed we all are in the first world with 'following our dreams,' I would honestly really love to see more stories that let people know that it's okay if you don't have a dream and maybe that's really what's best for some of us. The truth is, most of us can't and really Shouldn't be 'following our dreams.' Just because you're decent at drawing doesn't mean drawing should be your career. It's okay for it to just be your hobby. Just because you really love volleyball and play it well doesn't mean you need to play it at the Olympics. It's okay for volleyball to just be a fun means of exercise. Contentment and purpose aren't found solely in having a 'dream career' or 'doing what you love.' Sometimes it's found in a job well done, regardless of what that job is.

In the end, this drama tried to be something it wasn't, and I think it suffered for it. It tried to be a story about purpose, but ended up being more of a fluff piece. And that's okay, I just think it would have been better if it had chosen one and committed to it.

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What a moving movie this was, a story about the impact a mother has on the people around her, from her daughter to her estranged husband to a lost child to all the other people the mother meets on her journey. There are multiple different characters in this film, but for all intents and purposes, the three women of the family, Futaba, Azumi, and Ayuko, are the main characters and the ones whose stories the film is really trying to tell.

I found Futaba herself to be the sort of woman I wish I could be. Tough, resilient, refuses to quit or back down. And she could quit. She could give up, and you would completely understand why. As you discover over the course of the story, life has not been easy for her. But Futaba never quits. She has a determination that pushes her and pushes her and pushes her and that pushes the people around her as well. It's ultimately her perseverance that moves this movie along and makes you want to invest in the characters lives and well-being.

I appreciated all of the little ways Futaba worked to teach Azumi how to be brave and bold and courageous. First, she lead by example with the way she lived her own life. Second, she pushed Azumi when she needed to, sometimes thrusting her into the deep end where she had no choice but to swim. When Azumi stripped down to her underwear in the middle of class to reveal the new underwear Futaba had given her 'for that special moment when you need it', I was proud of her courage. I was also kind of uncomfortable. I certainly understand Why she did it, and I can admit that it was ultimately very affective at getting her point across, but I will never be totally comfortable with very young actors/actresses stripping down for the camera. There's just a feeling of exploitation that I cannot shake.

Regardless, the lessons Futaba had been teaching Azumi up to that point were clearly sinking in. I think the only thing Futaba did that I found disappointing and somewhat upsetting in her effort to teach Azumi to be more resilient was the way she revealed to Azumi that she was adopted. I was initially confused and somewhat turned off by the plot twist as it seemed like not only overkill for the story but a rather cruel approach. But it was handled in an interesting and ultimately positive way, and it was clearly set up to happen from the beginning of the story, so I can't say that it was poorly written or planned out. Now that I'm a few days away from having watched this film, I'm not as bothered by the twist as I was, and I think I've almost come around to it, but it might take another viewing for me to feel truly comfortable with it.

Futaba's easy acceptance of Ayuko is another particularly impactful part of the film. The way she embraces Ayuko into the fold of their family so naturally, not making a big deal out of it or making a point of it, but treating it like it's just a normal thing, 'Ayuko was an orphan, and now she's not. Could you please pass the ketchup?,' this could feel a bit insulting to us westerners, because we like to acknowledge the unfairness of the abandoned child's situation and openly discuss it so as to give the child the space to express their own feelings. And I won't lie and say that I Like Japan's non-response way of dealing with difficult situations like this one. But in a culture like Japan where so many things are often left unsaid and left unaddressed and just flat out ignored, I do think it was the most thoughtful and appropriate way of dealing with the situation if you're Not going to bring it all out into the open and talk it through.

Now, throughout the movie, you think Futaba cares so much for Azumi and Ayuko because she's just a deeply giving and loving person (and I think that is still part of the reason), but you discover towards the end that there's another more secret reason, something that connects her to these two girls in a deeply emotional way and makes her all the more determined to give them the best chance in life they can get.

And that is that Futaba was an orphan herself.

What's particularly impactful about this reveal is that you can see how easy it would have been for Futaba to say 'these kids are not my problem.' We see in many other Japanese films and dramas, etc. that being an orphan in Japanese culture is not exactly accepted or understood by broader society, and those who are orphans or from deeply broken homes typically hide this fact about themselves from others once they get older. But another, equally unfortunate, aspect of this is that those who are/were orphaned, etc. often refuse to associate with anyone else who was/is orphaned as well. The shame associated with being an orphan, and the reminder it can give you of your own shame, can be particularly potent in many societies like Japans.

This is where Futaba's unwavering commitment to her own principles shines the most. Not only does Futaba refuse to do this to Azumi and Ayuko, refuses to abandon them like she was abandoned, like they have both already Been abandoned, she instead goes above and beyond to provide them with all of the love and encouragement and instruction she can. Those kids are going to have a decent chance in life if she has anything to say about it.

Of course, Futaba has her own struggles, her own inner demons, and we eventually get a glimpse of them towards the end of the film. Her desire to be loved and accepted by her birth mother, her deep-seated anger with Azumi's birth mother for abandoning her, her own fear of being alone/abandoned by those she loves, all tied into her experience of being abandoned, orphaned, unwanted much of her life and all pushing her to work twice as hard to make sure those around her don't go through the same thing.

I will be honest here and say that I do wish that the reason characters in Japanese films or dramas are so sacrificial and willing to just accept others with difficult backgrounds wasn't always because they themselves come from the same or similar backgrounds. I would like to see more of these stories show regular people who maybe haven't experienced the level of heartache the three leads in Bathwater have doing the right thing simply because...it's the right thing to do. But when a story is as compelling as our three female leads, I can accept that maybe this just wasn't the right movie for that to happen in.

Now, before I end this review, I want to address the elephant in the room of this movie, that being Futaba's husband, Kazuhiro.

Kazuhiro is a big, fat coward.

While I'm glad she tracked him down and brought him back, because he's ultimately the one who should be responsible for Azumi (and later Ayuko's) upbringing, boiiiiiiiiiii does he piss you off. His reason for leaving the family has got to be about the dumbest thing ever, and I want to smack him upside the head a few times just to release my frustration. A woman shows up at his house and says 'this is your daughter because we had sex together once,' he just assumes she's telling the truth, and instead of sitting down with his wife and talking the situation out with her....he just up and leaves to go live with this woman and her daughter whom she has not proved is his in the first place. On the one hand, I'm extremely glad he did it, because Ayuko probably would have never found a family of her own and possibly could have ended up in a much worse situation. I'm glad that through his dumbass idiocy, Kazuhiro and Futaba and Azumi were able to become her family. But boy if he didn't have to take the dumbest route to that outcome. Credit where credit is due, he does come back to the family once she tracks him down, he does make an effort to be involved once he gets back, and by the end of the movie, I felt pretty reassured that he wouldn't run off and abandon his family again. But oh my GAD, was he stupid.

There are a couple of other characters who play a valuable role in this film, namely the hitchhiking kid and Azumi's birth mom, but Bathwater isn't their story. It isn't Kazuhiro's story. Futaba, Azumi, and Ayuko are the heart and soul of Bathwater, and it's story was theirs and theirs alone.

And for that, I'm grateful that this film exists.

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I don't know that I like this drama. I like the main characters and relate to their struggles with finding love and purpose and meaning in their lives. I like their friendship with each other and how loyal they are to one another and always there to lend a shoulder or an ear. And I inherently love stories that explore what it means to love and be in a relationship and all that juicy romantic stuff. It's just the story built around these characters and their friendship and their pursuit of love that could have been fleshed out better.

Rinko's story has the most substance to it and the most development. She's a rather immature character who spends most of the drama seeking the most shallow idea of love possible. Throughout the story, you find yourself feeling more and more frustrated with her childish, immature way of thinking and how many times she makes a decision only to change her mind at the last minute, because the truth is, she really doesn't know what she wants or what she's doing. But she does have a genuine story arch and experiences some real character growth, and by the end of the drama, you can tell that she's finally, genuinely trying to get it right. She really wants it this time, and she's doing everything the right way...and yet she still gets it wrong. Ooof, did I feel for her in that moment.

The other female leads stories were not nearly as engaging.

We have Kaori whose story arch starts off strong. She runs into her ex after having not seen him for years and swiftly finds herself engaging in an affair with him despite her better judgement. I will never approve of affairs as a matter of principle, but the storyline Makes Sense. There's history there, unresolved feelings, the question of what-if, and you can understand how Kaori would find herself in such a situation, even if you don't agree with her choices. But the storyline starts to fizzle out toward the end, and by the time the situation is resolved (and it's resolved in a mostly satisfactory way), you've kind of lost interest.

Then's there Koyuki. I feel like the writers got to Koyuki and were like 'Uhhh, we don't know what to do with this character, sooooooooo let's make her have an affair too!' Not only is her relationship with 'random guy' probably the most BORing relationship ever, but it feels so incredibly out of character for Koyuki to engage in an affair in the first place. She's the most headstrong, conscientious one of the three leads, and I was hoping for something more meaty and interesting for her character. Like maybe she meets a man who is disabled, and the people around her are all telling her not to be with him because of how difficult the relationship would be, but she defies them all and loves him anyway. Or maybe she decides to eschew love and marriage altogether and live out the rest of her life a single lady, because she's happy with things just the way they are. Either way, both of these options would have been better than what we ended up with. I honestly feel bad for her character, because she really does get the short end of the stick in terms of storyline.

But what really frustrates me with this drama is that none of the leads, with the exception of the main lead towards the end, take any real responsibility for their part in the situations they find themselves in. It takes two to tango (or to have an affair in the case of this drama), but neither of the girls involved in the affairs really take much accountability for their actions, and that's just about the most annoying thing ever.

You're probably wondering at this point in the review why I kept watching this drama if I found the female leads separate storylines so frustrating. Well, first and foremost, their friendship with each other is one of the best parts of the drama, and one of the things that kept me coming back. As annoying as it is to watch them make such silly decisions on repeat, it's equally delightful watching them together, chatting over food and drinks about the daily goings on of their lives. They're such a tight-knit group, so loyal to each other, and they just look like a lot of fun to be around.

I also really liked Rinko's two biggest potential romantic interests, KEY and Tetsuro. I was sad for Tetsuro at the end, because he came so close to getting the girl (and honestly is every bit deserving of her as any other guy, and might even be more suited to her, if we're being honest), but he ultimately found himself in second male lead land through no fault of his own, and I hope he's able to find his own happiness in the sequel drama coming out later this year.

As for KEY, a lot of people think he's mean or abusive or what-have you, but I have to disagree. Yeah, he could be kind of a jerk at times, poking his nose into the leads business and offering his unwanted opinions and being rather judgmental of them (although I can't totally fault him for that one considering how consistent these girls are in making stupid choices and then whining about it later), but he's certainly not this awful, abusive monster that a lot of people have made him out to be. His bark is definitely worse than his bite, and I personally was not opposed to him ending up with our female lead at the end.

My only complaint with KEY is that his tragic backstory...is that he married his high school teacher because she was dying to fulfill her last wish????? I'm not surprised to see this in a Japanese drama, because it's the sort of thing I would expect at this point in my drama viewing history, but I will never stop finding these sorts of plot lines ridiculous. I don't know much about marriage laws in Japan, and it may very well be legal for a teacher to marry their student, but I certainly don't find that particularly...copasetic. I also just find it pretty stupid, because how does marrying your student whom you are not in love with fulfill your dying wish of falling in love and getting married? Um, it doesn't. But it's a fortunately small part of the drama and was no more than an innocent friendship rather than romantic relationship, so I can overlook it.

Now, if you've read all of that above ^ and are thinking 'this girl didn't like this drama and probably won't watch the sequel'........I will most DEFinitely be watching the sequel, because as frustrating as this drama was, I also strangely enjoyed it. I know. I started this review saying I don't think I like this drama and then I ended the review saying I enjoyed it. I guess I'm as illogical and all over the place as the Tokyo Tarareba Girls, lol. But it's true. I've given this drama an 8 overall, because in spite of it's flaws and the frustration with characters decisions and there not being enough character and story development for two of the leads, I'm invested in these girls and want to see where they end up.

That and I had planned a trip to Japan this year during the Olympics myself that all fell apart (before the Covid stuff ever happened), and I guess I want to live vicariously through these characters a little bit.

So sue me, lol.

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I've struggled when it comes to Japanese dramas. I have frequently found myself starting a Jdrama and quickly noping out because it's not anything like what I wanted/expected. First and foremost, I don't trust any Jdrama genre tags. Just because it says romance or rom-com (totally unrelated example; not the bane of my Jdrama existence or anything) doesn't mean there will be the kind of romance or romantic comedy you're looking for. Second, there appears to be a much wider variety of subject matter when it comes to Jdramas compared to Kdramas (my personal drama country go to), which makes it that much harder to find that specific type of drama you're looking for. Third, it kind of feels like Jdrama production teams are just experimenting by throwing things at the wall and seeing what works and then sometimes not even really caring if it doesn't work. And fourth, everything about Jdrama production is just Different. Different acting styles, different camerawork, different forms of story-telling, etc. etc. etc. I've had to come to the conclusion in recent months that in order to find, watch, and enjoy Jdramas, I have to leave All my expectations at the door, because they most likely won't be met except in the exact moments when I'm not looking.

I tell you all of this to say that when I find a Jdrama that works for me, it's kind of a big deal. And this Jdrama worked for me. Very, very, deeply worked for me.

There's honestly not a single thing about this drama I could complain about. We're presented with an unusual, but still very real and relatable and easy to connect with family who may fuss and fight but will always love each other at the end of the day; multiple life situations grounded in reality and tackled by our characters in satisfying ways; and a female lead who may be spoiled, but who is easily one of the kindest, most determined, easiest to root for female leads in all of Asian drama history. Kahoko is just likable, and you want to see her succeed.

I highly recommend this drama to anyone who watches Asian dramas.

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This is a cute little movie that will make you smile and laugh and maybe squeal a little at the adorableness. I liked the past-day couple more than the present-day couple, mainly because we spend so little time with our present-day couple getting to know them and I have a soft-spot for innocent teen romance stories, but both couples are pretty easy to root for. I also didn’t find the dramatic bits of the story, the secondary female leads illness/the subsequent break up of the past-couple’s relationship/the eventual reunion of the past-couple as adults, all that compelling or interesting, because I honestly just wanted to see them together when they were young, but this isn’t a movie requiring a lot of investment/commitment to that part of the plot, so it’s not too hard to overlook. At the end of the day, this movie is meant to be fluffy and fun and easy to watch, and it succeeds in every respect.

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I'm giving this web drama a 7.5 purely based on my own personal enjoyment of it, not because of quality. In terms of quality, it's very well-done and definitely deserves an overall rating of 10. It just didn't quite hit me where I like stories to hit me.

As far as what the story is like, it's slice of life told in a series of vignettes with food playing an important role. The story isn't About food. It's about the female lead's life and where it takes her. But food is a prevalent theme as the female lead enjoys cooking, and every episode involves an important meal which you are later given a full recipe on how to make. It's not a unique setup at this point in dramaland, but this is definitely an example of the setup done right.

If you enjoy food dramas, and you enjoy web dramas, you will enjoy this drama.

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Updated Review 2022:

I finished my first rewatch of Shopping King Louis this past weekend, and I'm so happy I decided to watch it again. First of all, I loved it my first watch through. The story and the characters were effortlessly charming, and the story was great fun to watch. It was a feel-good drama from beginning to end. Upon rewatching, however, I've realized that this drama is so much better than I remembered it being, and now I love it even more. Truthfully, I'm surprised at how incredibly well-crafted this drama is and how well it still holds up. Kdramas from its time tended to have problems with plot consistency, particularly towards the end, but this drama kept itself in check the entire time. There's not a single dropped or unsatisfactorily wrapped up plot point to be found here. And the story itself isn't just fluffy entertainment (although it is certainly entertaining in a delightfully fluffy way). Shopping King Louis has some real meat on its bones, something I don't think I particularly appreciated the first time I watched it.

For example, the writers never rely (not even once) on drawn out conflict or misunderstandings (like most dramas of its time) to keep the plot moving and the audience interested/watching. When issues are introduced, they are summarily addressed in an appropriate manner at an appropriate time. There are no nonsensical misunderstandings or randomly added conflicts that serve to do nothing more than frustrate the viewer. Everything is there for a purpose, and everything ties together in realistic and valuable ways. What's better, the drama has a consistent habit of bringing back small moments from early in the drama to give them greater meaning in the overall story. Nothing is superfluous or wasted.

And the one part of the story that would have been the easiest to mishandle, the leads separation after learning what happened to the Bok Shil's brother and how that connects Bok Shil and Louis to each other, is done to superb affect. I initially went into the break-up and separation kicking and screaming, because like most drama lovers who've been watching dramas for a long time, we've been down this road many times before and have the trauma to prove it. But they utilized the cliche/trope So. Well. in Shopping King that I had to change my mind. I do wish Bok Shil and Louis could have come to the conclusion on their own that they wanted to stay together, because they ultimately love each other and there's clearly no anger or hurt towards each other over what happened so what are they separating for anyway, but I have to give the drama the credit it is so obviously due and admit that the break-up/separation was used really well and furthered the story in a meaningful way.

In closing, this is a total comfort drama, perfect for when you when you want a story that will make you feel good. I absolutely stand by everything I said in my original MDL review and then some, so I'll just add it here:

The romance is bubblegum sweet, the story is gentle and heartwarming, the twists smart and unexpected. The characters make you smile and laugh and cry and smile some more. It's basically like one big, exhilarating, endorphin releasing shopping trip, but without any regret. Everything you bought is exactly what you wanted for exactly the right price. This is going in my list of favorite drama's, Pronto!

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While I don't know that this drama will leave a lasting impression on me, I enjoyed watching it. It's sweet and funny and tender hearted with a wonderful set of characters, and I even ended up enjoying the setting.

But while I think the leads were well suited for each other, and I don't have a problem with the pairing at all, my second lead feels were very, very strong. I don't know if that's because I wanted him and the lead together, or I just wanted to see him find someone too, but that boy was just too cute for his own good, and I honestly could watch an entire drama just about him finding a girl of his own.

My only complaint is that the romance is not fully resolved at the end, and I hate unresolved romance. Like a lot. Still, I think it's worth watching.

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I was so hype for this drama. I'd just finished Age of Youth and was on a Hye Soo high. I loved, loved, loved the story idea. Shy, insecure characters are super relatable to me, and I love Love stories where the love interest builds up the shy, insecure character and helps them gain newfound confidence.

I wanted this to be good.

I was very disappointed by what it turned out to be.

Like most everyone else who watched this drama, Hye Soo's character went a bridge too far for me. The first two episodes were fun and light hearted, and while the female lead was very over the top, I still enjoyed her as a character. Her antics were a little ham but still understandable and relatable. In eps 3 and 4, her character took a real nosedive, and her personality went from initially over the top but fun to downright exacerbating. Her behavior resembled an Elementary school playground fight. It wasn't cute or funny anymore.

The writers realized, after eps 3 and 4, that the audience was Very disgruntled with the character, and they did what they could to tone her down and make her less annoying. And I think the changes worked. But I never regained the enthusiasm for the drama I had initially and ended up dropping it not far from the end.

I won't recommend this drama, but I won't tell you not to watch it either, because the missteps might not keep you from enjoying it like they did me. But go in aware.

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With dramas like this, I don't know how useful it is to critique them based on any sort of serious metric. True Beauty was never going to be deep-thinking or artistically minded or particularly focused on it's writing, and you're setting yourself up for disappointment by taking it too seriously. So while it ultimately doesn't have very much depth, I'm not upset about it. I just wish I'd been able to finish the drama with the same level of enjoyment as when I started.

Unfortunately, the reality of dramaland is that for some dramas, the first half feels one way and the second half feels another, and you don't know how to feel about the drama as a whole, and that's definitely what True Beauty was like for me.

The first half was my jam. It wasn't stellarly written, by any means, but it did all of the things I wanted it to with a cast of likable characters, and that was enough. But the second half was equal parts plodding, occasionally frustrating, and sometimes even boring. The theme of confidence and self-acceptance and what beauty really means really takes a backseat. There are a number of genuinely moving moments, but the drama ultimately doesn't do a very deep, or consistent, exploration of these issues. And then the last two episodes not only have very little to do with any of this but they also focus on secondary issues that don't make sense being so far in the forefront of the story.

If you want a drama that broaches it's topics with thoughtfulness and some level of depth and consistency, you're better off watching a drama like My ID is Gangnam Beauty. While not perfect, ID understands it's subject matter and commits to it while True Beauty mainly uses it as a means of getting it's leads together. If you're not concerned with any of that and just want something fluffy and teen-angsty and cute and pretty, then by all means, watch this drama. You'll probably like it well enough.

Ultimately, True Beauty is a surface-level teen drama, and it knows it and does it well.

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