Beatrice

The show has a nice cinematic feel though there are jarring, though thankfully rare moments where it seems the cinematographer changed when it suddenly has the look of a more typical tv drama camera set up. The scholarship students fight against the systemic corruption and it's great that the smart kids put their intelligence to use and actually gets results, but the pacing of the story drags on for a bit at the beginning, though gets better towards the end. Each episode ranges from 40 to 50 minutes or so long for 16 episodes. It's an interesting twist that the scholarship student used to be a rich girl, though aside from monetary issues for her not being able to study cello anymore, there isn't much that she deals with adjusting even though she was rich just months before. The one year exchange student music program deal is not too bad, at least she would have to deal with one less year of her school debt since it's all expenses paid unlike her actual school. Every scene of the boys that Rose are friends regarding their crush on her and jealousy at each other and her closeness with her long time friend Bom are extremely boring. There are so many and doesn't add anything to the story at all.

Rose's objectively attractive, popular athlete, one year older friend Bom who also had a perhaps for a while mutual crush on her is also part of the problem in student leadership but just wants to go along to get along because it doesn't harm him as much being at the top, but Rose changes his mind enough to help them in the end above and beyond expectations, using his access to get video footage of the corruption. Better late than never. Rose becomes aware that all her guy friends are crushing on her, which makes her feel the burden of not wanting to hurt her friend's male egos. It's so annoying when Boo and Surf are jealous, let the girl who works hard to bring seemingly impossible changes to the school spend time with the gorgeous senior before he graduates. Rose tells Surf she likes him, but there's zero chemistry and they have more sibling vibes. She also does stop liking him in that way, which to Surf's credit notices and is the one to bring it up with her. It's refreshing that the show shows that dating in high school doesn't mean the feelings never change.

I love that Lily is actually genuinely a good student and is convinced to do better by the school like Rose. Boo is a huge incel who snuck into her room and fanned the flames that she's the thief who stole the corruption money for her father's surgery. The flames hit him too. He doesn't rat out Teacher Mike knowing that his thief girlfriend who is charge of the school funds stealing the student's parent's government entitlements out of bro code, but doesn't even spare a thought the pressure Rose is under with her dying father needed expensive surgery. Rose's mom still doesn't find it suspicious whenever the principal visits from that corrupt school. It's good that the kids are able to, though just barely, find adults who are able to help, though the kids are the ones who did all of the investigative leg work that's needed. It's nice that Lily's villain seeming head of the PTA dad also has a change of heart like she does and becomes one of the adults instrumental in helping the kids enact their plan. The teachers and staff help once their livelihoods are on the line as well. If this was an American show, Rose would take her aptitude at tackling corruption and apply to be an FBI agent or something, but she's off discovering herself now that she has some money again from her father's life insurance while her friends have a reunion and thinking of her.