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This review may contain spoilers
Questionable, Uncomfortable, Yet Surprisingly Watchable
An age-gap romance between a teacher and her student doesn't exactly sound comfortable when you first hear about it. I actually tried to pass on this drama several times, but the poster and title kept intriguing me. Eventually, I thought, why not? At worst, I could always drop it. Somehow, I ended up finishing it.
This is definitely not a drama that will make you feel warm and fuzzy. If anything, it makes you question the characters, their choices, the dynamics between them, and even your own feelings about what you're watching. The drama does try to justify the leads' actions, but I personally wasn't convinced by it.
The ML is 17, almost 18, and still in high school. He's rebellious and constantly gets into trouble, partly to spite his wealthy and controlling mother, who has a lot of influence over the school. Then we have the FL, a 30-year-old new teacher who becomes involved in his life. From the very beginning, the age gap and teacher-student dynamic made the romance uncomfortable for me.
The first few episodes were especially difficult to watch. The ML clearly develops feelings for her, while she initially tries to maintain boundaries but slowly develops feelings herself. It isn't presented as something overtly inappropriate at first, but watching a teacher gradually become romantically involved with her student was still extremely uncomfortable.
And as someone who has been a teacher myself, my teacher mode was working overtime while watching this drama. I usually try to ignore unrealistic school details for the sake of entertainment, but here there were so many things that kept pulling me out of the story.
The bullying storyline was one of my biggest problems. I really dislike dramas where bullying is a major part of the plot, and this one was especially difficult for me to sit through. The private-school parent association setup also felt very fake and forced, mainly existing to give the ML's mother power and influence over the school.
The school itself never really felt like an actual school to me, and the teachers didn't behave in ways that felt believable. The FL's professionalism was another major issue. She repeatedly behaved in ways that I found difficult to respect, and because this is supposed to be a romance, I needed to at least understand or connect with the leads. Unfortunately, I never really did.
The ML also felt very one-dimensional to me. His rebellious behaviour is established early, but I never felt that the character developed enough beyond that. I kept waiting for more depth and complexity, but most of the time he remained the same difficult teenager.
The drama also seems confused about what it actually wants to be. Is it a romance? A crime mystery? A revenge story? It tries to be all three, but the combination doesn't always work. The romance was easily the weakest part for me. I didn't feel the chemistry, emotional connection, tension, or spark between the leads that would make me understand why they were drawn to each other.
Interestingly, I thought the FL's revenge storyline was much more successful. The mystery surrounding her past was kept hidden reasonably well, and I didn't see everything coming. The stalker storyline, on the other hand, was pretty obvious to me from the beginning.
There are also quite a few disturbing twists throughout the drama. Some were predictable, others genuinely surprised me, but many of them left me feeling uncomfortable rather than emotionally invested.
That said, I can't say I hated watching it. I was entertained enough to keep pressing the next episode button, and the story did manage to surprise me at least once. So despite all my problems with it, I still finished it.
Overall, I'd call this an average watch that didn't quite deliver on its potential*. It raises some interesting questions about boundaries, morality, relationships, and how people justify their choices, but the romance didn't work for me, the school setting felt unrealistic, and too many character decisions were difficult to accept.
If you're curious about it, I'd say give it a try and decide for yourself. If the teacher-student dynamic makes you uncomfortable, though, there's absolutely no need to force yourself through it. Just be prepared for a drama that will probably make you uncomfortable more often than it makes you swoon.
This is definitely not a drama that will make you feel warm and fuzzy. If anything, it makes you question the characters, their choices, the dynamics between them, and even your own feelings about what you're watching. The drama does try to justify the leads' actions, but I personally wasn't convinced by it.
The ML is 17, almost 18, and still in high school. He's rebellious and constantly gets into trouble, partly to spite his wealthy and controlling mother, who has a lot of influence over the school. Then we have the FL, a 30-year-old new teacher who becomes involved in his life. From the very beginning, the age gap and teacher-student dynamic made the romance uncomfortable for me.
The first few episodes were especially difficult to watch. The ML clearly develops feelings for her, while she initially tries to maintain boundaries but slowly develops feelings herself. It isn't presented as something overtly inappropriate at first, but watching a teacher gradually become romantically involved with her student was still extremely uncomfortable.
And as someone who has been a teacher myself, my teacher mode was working overtime while watching this drama. I usually try to ignore unrealistic school details for the sake of entertainment, but here there were so many things that kept pulling me out of the story.
The bullying storyline was one of my biggest problems. I really dislike dramas where bullying is a major part of the plot, and this one was especially difficult for me to sit through. The private-school parent association setup also felt very fake and forced, mainly existing to give the ML's mother power and influence over the school.
The school itself never really felt like an actual school to me, and the teachers didn't behave in ways that felt believable. The FL's professionalism was another major issue. She repeatedly behaved in ways that I found difficult to respect, and because this is supposed to be a romance, I needed to at least understand or connect with the leads. Unfortunately, I never really did.
The ML also felt very one-dimensional to me. His rebellious behaviour is established early, but I never felt that the character developed enough beyond that. I kept waiting for more depth and complexity, but most of the time he remained the same difficult teenager.
The drama also seems confused about what it actually wants to be. Is it a romance? A crime mystery? A revenge story? It tries to be all three, but the combination doesn't always work. The romance was easily the weakest part for me. I didn't feel the chemistry, emotional connection, tension, or spark between the leads that would make me understand why they were drawn to each other.
Interestingly, I thought the FL's revenge storyline was much more successful. The mystery surrounding her past was kept hidden reasonably well, and I didn't see everything coming. The stalker storyline, on the other hand, was pretty obvious to me from the beginning.
There are also quite a few disturbing twists throughout the drama. Some were predictable, others genuinely surprised me, but many of them left me feeling uncomfortable rather than emotionally invested.
That said, I can't say I hated watching it. I was entertained enough to keep pressing the next episode button, and the story did manage to surprise me at least once. So despite all my problems with it, I still finished it.
Overall, I'd call this an average watch that didn't quite deliver on its potential*. It raises some interesting questions about boundaries, morality, relationships, and how people justify their choices, but the romance didn't work for me, the school setting felt unrealistic, and too many character decisions were difficult to accept.
If you're curious about it, I'd say give it a try and decide for yourself. If the teacher-student dynamic makes you uncomfortable, though, there's absolutely no need to force yourself through it. Just be prepared for a drama that will probably make you uncomfortable more often than it makes you swoon.
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