Rajwant

I read an opinion on google.com that literally reflects what I think about this series and I will allow myself to quote it here. I hope the author will forgive me for this quote but I couldn't contact her and her description is spot on for me.

"Shinjini Chatterjee
5 months ago
I was so looking forward to a romance starring Ju Ji Hoon and Jung Yu Mi. Both are veteran actors with strong filmographies, mostly in the drama genre, and the trailers were very promising.

The series covers an almost 2 decade on and off relationship of the two Ji Wons that started in high school against the backdrop of warring families. The initial episodes shift between the past and present, interspersing the blossoming romance between the teenage Ji Wons with the conflicting feelings that confront the adult Ji Wons as they meet again decades later. The teenage romance is mostly charming and the chemistry between the teen leads sweet. Unfortunately, the good things stop there. As we progress into the changing feelings and romance of the now older couple, it seems that we're watching a teen drama with adult actors. It's unbelievable that adults are made to behave like coy children, and the romance feels forced and the chemistry nonexistent. After a long break and rediscovery of each other, it would be natural to expect some passion, albeit within the Kdrama limits of skinship. But they just hold hands and give shy looks at each other. In between, the female Ji Won keeps hitting the male Ji Won, apparently because it's charming to do so. The story develops in a predictable fashion, typically in the last episode struggling to tie up every possible loose thread to its boring end.

The casting choices are surprising, to say the least. It's difficult to imagine Ju Ji Hoon as 36 since he has a mature face. His mother is played by a 50 yr old, while Jung Yu Mi's (41) grandfather is played by a 65 yr old actor, and the rival male love interest is only 24 and pretty much looks that. Jung Yu Mi looks like his aunt. Whether this is ageism in KDrama or strange casting is difficult to understand, but the whole setup looks weird.

I also have to mention this: the costume department should be sued. Jung Yu Mi looks nice even in the restaurant reality shows she's been in. But here she's made to wear the ugliest, frumpiest clothes and is in sweats almost through the series. In the wedding photoshoot scene where Ju Ji Hoon gasps when he sees her, I swear it had to be because he was shocked at how and where such a terrible sack-dress could be found. Seriously, I haven't seen an uglier and more ill-fitting wedding dress on TV.

All in all, the series had potential but ended up being very disappointing due to a boring script, unattractive visuals and strange casting. I'm looking forward to seeing the leads in better dramas."

Thank you.

He is beautiful and it's nice to look at his silhouette. As a man - he is just blossoming.
Now I am checking what kind of actor he is.

The love story of this man and his wife it beats - for me - all the Asian dramas I've watched and I've watched over 500 of them. Adapting their love stories from reality to film/drama is an amazing subject, whoever takes it on and doesn't mess it up - it's like winning the grand prize, such is the potential. Life writes the best stories!

I actually liked that FL quickly realized that there was no point in being angry at her husband mistress. After all, the mistress only showed the true face of FL's husband and spared her the next years of being in a dead relationship (a shell). From the whole mess, only good things came out for FL and she should be grateful to the mistress for this.. I think that this is the correct attitude of every valuable woman, even if she is previously trampled by her husband.

P.S. I will go even further in my considerations: I believe that if a wife and a mistress hate each other – only the man wins.

The same - what you wrote about FL - yes she is a bit stiff but the worst thing is flaunting her body on which you can learn the skeletal system like on a skeleton (e.g. her jogging outfit in episode 3), it is unpleasant to watch, it's like an advertisement for anorexia.
In my eyes it took away all FL's charm.

It doesn't work..

To you and all the others who think the same way after reading my comment:
I don't see the entire FL acting as bad - no.
However - for me - her acting (not written role!) is a bit weaker in the moments I wrote about above than ML's acting in its entirety .
Apparently our perceptions is differ and that's ok too. Best regards.

IMO it's a beautiful fairy tale about a lovely princess on the run with a painful past and a handsome, persistent prince who travels "mountains and forests" to find and save her (a reference to what ML's sister said). Both of them - being a couple of introverts - grind their thorns during this journey and become more noble and valuable people heading towards Love. That's all about the plot.

As for the acting - ML is absolutely flawless, natural and sincere. If I were to judge him only by this drama - he is in the top of Chinese actors. I will definitely follow his career to see - I hope - his versatility.

FL came out a bit worse - especially against the background of ML's brilliantly played role. Her weakest moments are a certain mannerism in the initial phase of every intimate situation and in acting out being drunk. For this reason, I even wanted to abandon the series after the 20th episode, because these weak moments were repulsive to me.
As for the photos – there could be fewer frequent shots of ML and FL's faces from so close up that you can see the actors' pores, applied foundation on their faces, and their heads are cut off because they don't fit in the frame.

The background music – great.

As I wrote at the beginning the story is beautiful but execution is not perfect - partly acting and partly photosnot, so the shortcomings are more technical in nature (the art of acting, the art of filming) than plot-related.

You're welcome! As I wrote, my no 1 is obviously the "Flower of Evil" with a brilliant performance by Lee Joon Gi. Enjoy watching! It's worth focusing to see and feel all the layers. Greetings.

A great reference to Orwell's "1984", that's exactly what I thought because I read it quite recently.. in the context of China of course.

And amazing acting skils.

The plot was average and had holes in the story but the use of the comedy aspect lifted it up a lot. What made me want to comment was my admiration for actor XZX playing ML. He is amazing. He presented a full spectrum of emotional flavors and the changes in his eyes and face from a lovesick puppy to a cold-blooded psychopath were immediate. Brilliant guy. I was charmed by his acting and will be following him.

I read on his MDL website that when he passed the entrance exams to the Central Academy of Dramatic Arts he came second out of all the candidates competing in the acting section, which is quite an achievement and shows that his talent was evident even before that.

Below I quote a fragment from @Jilly's review, which I fully agree with and support...
"The acting for the FL was okay, but the ML caught my attention, seeing him act all flirty like a concubine trying to get their master's affection, and then switch to a villain haha ​​😄.. he did a great job, and I loved his character all together, great antihero ❤️"

Flower of Evil (2020) South Korea - this is number 1 for me - https://kisskh.at/54625-flower-of-evil,
Justice in the Dark (2023) China https://kisskh.at/50145-the-light-in-the-night (I am in the process),
maybe Happiness (2021) SK..

I remembered all of this and the first times it was ok but FL was clumsy even on the 30th time, when they had been together for a longer time. If people are affectionate towards each other, they don't peck at their partner like a hen pecks at grain. In my opinion, it was clearly either shame or lack of experience/ability to empathize with the situation as I wrote above.
It was artificial and it offended me.

For example, you can look at how other Chinese actresses do it in their dramas, e.g. Chen Fang Tong. The ability to play intimate scenes is crucial for romantic films. Seduction alone is not enough. Besides, in this seduction, FL sometimes bordered on desperation and that was pathetic,

Perfect sarcasm, thank you for this post.
I love the brilliance of internet users :)

Even the plot holes weren't as irritating as the bad kisses, especially the short kisses FL gave ML - reminiscent of a hen pecking for grains.

I perceive this as a lack of experience in intimacy plus a high degree of shame, not allowing me to play these scenes freely and skillfully.

ML - I liked him as a character, as an actor and his acting.
FL - beautiful face, good seduction, although at times it bordered on pathetic.

Funny, fresh and provocative.
I think it would have been rated higher if not for one plot moment that ruined it all: FL - on the one hand, a smart and talented girl in science, on the other hand, FL's stupidity and naivety reach beyond the cosmos, believing the word of a person who doesn't like her or believe in other's lie (ML's mother) and not conducting her own research. That's why I give it only 6/10

Because it is clearly a lack of respect for the other person - giving yourself the right to decide for them (I know what is good for you and you have nothing to do with it). And in a broader sense, this is absolutely typical in Confucianism and the patriarchy that results from it.

I read and read the comments here and I can't believe my eyes. I understand that almost everyone below, especially those who are most furious - have bought a virtual judge license. The thunder and lightning they throw are... strange, maybe funny because they are not even tragic anymore. It's as if the commenters themselves were crystal clear and could never accuse them of anything..

Nobody knows what the truth was, regardless of who admitted to what. In such situations, the cultural differences between SK (or China/Japan) and the rest of the countries especially from other continents are probably most visible.
Fierce, long-term obsessive fans who are a specific product of that region can elevate an idol to great heights and destroy him with the same force if he does not - in their opinion - behave inappropriately. And none of the commenters wants to see that they are taking part in the performance.
In my region, the saying is very much alive - "do not do to another person what is unpleasant to yourself". I just wanted to remind all of us that we have no right to judge anyone or anything, not only because we don't know the facts along with their context and motivations. We have to know the whole picture to give an opinion and none of the commenters here, including me, know that.
We only have another performance before our eyes. Not first and not last.
Greetings for all.

I wish him more leading roles, he is pleasing to the eye and has skills.