love this, because I am in awe of so many of these children. The quality of their performances is mind boggling. Lee Chae-Mi in Two Weeks, Nam Da-Reum from 6 Dragons and Memory, quickly came to mind, but there are so many! Yeo Jin Goo is my personal favorite. Immense talent that child!
A surprisingly good, adorable, and realistic drama! I enjoyed it immensely. While on the surface this drama plays as a lighthearted romance, it addresses many actual issues that couples deal (or fail to deal) with. I loved how these issues were faced head on in a practical and exemplary way. Within the light comedy format, the drama shows how honest conversations, confronting and dealing honestly with your problems, will resolve the vast majority of couple problems. It showed how the differences between men and women, the game playing both partake in, the misunderstandings and pain that arise from these, are, in and of themselves, not meant to hurt their partner, but, instead, arise from the basic differences both sides need to learn from and about in order to navigate a successful relationship and to understand the fears, insecurities, and inborn differences between people and sexes. Terrifically fun, laugh out loud, shed tears...it's all in here and I am so glad I watched it. What an unexpected pleasure and hugely enjoyable break from the typical kdrama format! Only one issue rang an off key, and I'm afraid that has to do with cultural differences and prejudices where adoption are concerned. The belief that because you have a child of your body that that child will be more yours, more a mini-me, than one you adopt and raise is singularly unenlightened. 8/10
Insane...the drama and us for watching it....to the bitter end! What a waste. Sorta. Actually I don't regret it. It's been a fun ride, bitching all the way.
Lee Jun Ho- Loved him in Memory, and LOVED Memory. Easily in my all time top 10 for dramas...you HAVE to watch. It is just beautiful. He handled his role in it very professionally, with a lot of assurance for a newbie. So glad you brought up Twenty (have not laughed so hard nor so much in ever! and Cold Eyes (for me it was an adrenaline junkie's movie...no depth just a terrific ride. Loved every minute of it). I am going to watch both of them again tonight. Just in the mood and I need to watch them to remind myself of his performances...it has been too long and too many and I need to refresh my old brain!
It's an absolute travesty what Im Soo Hyang has done to her face (nose?). Absolutely one of the most beautiful girls I have ever seen, her appearance in Five Children is such a shock to me and my friend. We loved her in Gisaeng (her first and she did well with terrific chemistry between her and Sung Hoon) in a sweet romance, and did even better in I Do as a hilarious Bad Girl who doesn't want to be bad but can't seem to stop herself--her best role. Generation, what episodes I got through, she was a walking doll. What a huge disappointment that show was. Just the reminder makes me depressed for what might have been. I blame the script, not the cast. I see she will be in a new movie at the end of this year with Lee Jung Jin! I'll definitely be watching (subs??) Anyway, I hope she grows (her nose---no, sorry that's bad of me!) as an actress and continues to get good parts.
Choi Woo Shik- What can you say about this very talented young man. Nothing else will stand as well in my memory of him after watching him in Set Me Free. I just read my comments on that movie and the heartbreak of it washed over me again and again I am in tears over the cruelty visited on children. The Best New Actor he received at the 2015 (35th) Korean Association of Film Critics Awards for this performance was richly deserved. I hope he has a long and illustrious career.
With the plethora of vampire dramas in the past couple years, I've been waiting in vain for another REAL vampire show like Prosecutor. One with out a lame script, or bad acting, or 1940's camp style. Finally this show, which had/has great potential to finally be the one to actually use something approaching what followers of good vampire drama consider reality or common sense within vampire lore. Unfortunately we went week after week with no filling in of the blanks, no history, no sense of who these vampires are, where they came from, what the overall agenda was, anything really that would create a vampire world that we could believe in. It was disappointing in that sense, yet... I was not disappointed in the show...only that aspect of it. If you are going to advertise a show as a vampire show, then you need to know your fan base is going to be people who want to believe in the vampire world you are presenting. It is hard to do that when we are given so little world building. Still an 8/10 for me. Really good acting and good stories, just not quite enough vampire...for me anyway. and the once a week format was a big continuity killer too...far better, I'm sure, marathoned.
I found it to be a lovely and touching movie and I cried buckets. Maybe it's just the mood I'm in but I'm not a sucker for schmaltzy movies. And this one was not,for me. It was heartfelt and true to the characters and their stories and it was told beautifully. I loved the actors and they all did a great job. D.O. is a big favorite of mine and I watched this for him, but everyone was wonderful.
wow...wasted potential. Had all the right stuff in place with a good concept, great production and acting then wasted it all on a script with Lapses of Logic and common sense you could drive the Kdrama White Truck of Doom through. It actually is 'scary', sorta, but that's mostly due to really good acting and the terrific overall concept, good production and adequate direction. Still, it was so predictable it was eye rollingly bad in certain parts This is your common everyday Home Invasion Scary Movie, but the twist, which you can see coming (like every other scary thing in the movie), was so unique that I wanted the rest of it to match up to that uniqueness. If you like this kind of genre you will definitely enjoy it and not feel like you wasted your time at all...I certainly didn't. It was a fast and enjoyable ride. 6.5
spot on with Soo Young and Jin Hee. I keep asking myself why I don't like Jin Hee and feel badly that I don't because I have no explanation for why...it's just instinct. So maybe, subconsciously, it's her voice? Soo Young I did not know at all. Spring made me a fan! Looking forward to seeing how she does in 38 Task Force
Just watched this for the 2nd time and bumped it up from 8 to 9. The police procedural stuff may be a bit lacking (as it is in 99% of kdrama), but the development of the twins relationship was riveting. One of the best ever Drama Specials
I too was struck by how different Soulmate was from other dramas. But, for me, that drama and any mention of it is a constant reminder of that tragic young man Shin Dong Wook. I constantly hope and pray he is alive and doing well and wonder how he is dealing with the horrific illness he was diagnosed with. But he has completely disappeared and there has been no word about him for so long now. For those who do not know, read here about the nightmare life this poor young man is dealing with. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Complex_regional_pain_syndrome
Really Good. Enjoyed it a lot Excellent fight scenes which, for me, were the highlight of the show. For all of its length, the movie moved quickly. The back story, told with many flashbacks seguing into the present day lives of the 4 old friends, is captivating enough to provide a center and cohesive bond between the explosive fight scenes. The ending is typical kdrama though so fell a TINY bit flat for me, considering the violence that is so prominently displayed through the rest of the movie. I don't mean it was necessarily a bad ending, but the back story hinted at a darkness in the reality of these mens' lives that the ending really did not match with. But I was not disappointed with it, it's always nice to enjoy a good ending instead of the dark and brutal ones that abound. So it's still 9/10 for me, mainly because of the great effort of the actors, director, and fight choreographer in this.
The Scan- well done, really good cast, great balancing of what could have been very dry material with action and enough tension to keep me glued to the screen. Just the mention of Yong Ha makes my heart seize up and the tears start to flow. His personal story is so overwhelming....8.5
Girl-Great acting. Good movie. One HUGE GAPING plot hole! Even in Korea rape kits are SOP. 7.5 Big knock down for sloppy writing of that plot point. Made the entire end of the movie fall flat for me. It did a great job of leaving a huge question about what really did happen, which made the movie even more thought provoking. Who was that girl really?
Cat-Sweet and a little sad. Really enjoyed it. 7.5
On this Mother's Day,watching the final episode, we have 2 mothers who exhibit unconditional love, acceptance, support, and forgiveness. The words Tae Suk's mom said are the heart and hope of every mother for her child. And Dong Woo's mother, despite her unremitting and unbearable pain at the loss of her precious son and the overwhelming anger at the boy who took him from her, with a true mother's heart and insight found it in her to give forgiveness and hope to a young man drowning in guilt and pain. Among a multitude of unforgettable scenes,these were 2 of the most beautiful...perhaps because I am the mother of a son and because it is this day.
I am filled with heartache at leaving this show behind. I don't want to leave these people. This drama was so perfect in so many ways and it is discouraging and frustrating at the lack of audience a brilliant production like this elicited. I guess because it was not full of idols and romance and young people, it just wasn't worth watching for many people. I hope the critics will remember and recognize the quality of this show and reward it handsomely. The casting, acting, writing, direction, and production in this drama were perfection. Not a single thing missing or off. Loved every single minute. the perfect word for Memory....UNFORGETTABLE!!
idiotic open ending. ff thru half of all the eps I did watch. What a waste of time. skipped 20+ to 72--didn't miss a thing. That ending...what a complete joke.
As always an interesting article with a variety of dramas to choose from. Only seen 3 of these. But School dramas are tiring to watch since invariably they deal with my most hated topic of bullying. This is an exhausting topic for you I'm sure since just reading some of your reviews of the darker shows is depressing!! Thanks again for all the great information and for all the work you do searching out these dramas. Your reviews are always very insightful.
It's an absolute travesty what Im Soo Hyang has done to her face (nose?). Absolutely one of the most beautiful girls I have ever seen, her appearance in Five Children is such a shock to me and my friend. We loved her in Gisaeng (her first and she did well with terrific chemistry between her and Sung Hoon) in a sweet romance, and did even better in I Do as a hilarious Bad Girl who doesn't want to be bad but can't seem to stop herself--her best role. Generation, what episodes I got through, she was a walking doll. What a huge disappointment that show was. Just the reminder makes me depressed for what might have been. I blame the script, not the cast. I see she will be in a new movie at the end of this year with Lee Jung Jin! I'll definitely be watching (subs??) Anyway, I hope she grows (her nose---no, sorry that's bad of me!) as an actress and continues to get good parts.
Choi Woo Shik- What can you say about this very talented young man. Nothing else will stand as well in my memory of him after watching him in Set Me Free. I just read my comments on that movie and the heartbreak of it washed over me again and again I am in tears over the cruelty visited on children. The Best New Actor he received at the 2015 (35th) Korean Association of Film Critics Awards for this performance was richly deserved. I hope he has a long and illustrious career.
Just watched this for the 2nd time and bumped it up from 8 to 9. The police procedural stuff may be a bit lacking (as it is in 99% of kdrama), but the development of the twins relationship was riveting. One of the best ever Drama Specials
Girl-Great acting. Good movie. One HUGE GAPING plot hole! Even in Korea rape kits are SOP. 7.5 Big knock down for sloppy writing of that plot point. Made the entire end of the movie fall flat for me. It did a great job of leaving a huge question about what really did happen, which made the movie even more thought provoking. Who was that girl really?
Cat-Sweet and a little sad. Really enjoyed it. 7.5
I am filled with heartache at leaving this show behind. I don't want to leave these people. This drama was so perfect in so many ways and it is discouraging and frustrating at the lack of audience a brilliant production like this elicited. I guess because it was not full of idols and romance and young people, it just wasn't worth watching for many people. I hope the critics will remember and recognize the quality of this show and reward it handsomely. The casting, acting, writing, direction, and production in this drama were perfection. Not a single thing missing or off. Loved every single minute. the perfect word for Memory....UNFORGETTABLE!!