comfortdramas

A disappointment even years after watching

I got the recommendation for WTCB from a TikTok. I'd gotten the rec for Reply '88, which I'd watched first. I adore Reply '88, so I went to WTCB running, thinking it would be of the same caliber. The high praises and reviews for the drama did not help, setting my standards sky high, just for them to end up falling like Icarus.

It's been three years since I watched the drama so my memory of most of it is a bit fuzzy. What I did not forget is how it made me feel. I'm actually proud of myself for making it to the very last episode, especially considering how there wasn't a single episode that I actually enjoyed.

I can't remember a single likeable character, all down to Pilgu (this drama was the first and last time I disliked a child character).

Dongbaek was described as this great and admirable character, yet I don't remember a single incident that made her live up to that reputation. She was set up to fail as a female lead.

Throughout the drama I hated how she was made at this paragon of pitiful yet brave and hardworking single mother, someone I was supposed to feel sorry and root for, but I just couldn't. Her mother and Yongsik's mother were better suited for that role in my opinion. At least I found their journeys into single motherhood more fitting for that.

I understood her reasons for leaving her ex, but not telling about the pregnancy THEN wanting to be pitiful for being a single mother, just did not land with me. What especially made me upset was when the ex found out about the child and tried to be in his life, but dongseok, the child and the boyfriend (why was he even sticking his nose in that matter) made him out to be the villain and kept him away. The whole time I was watching I kept thinking "Am I really supposed to feel sorry for her for this?"

The other parts of her life definitely made her pitiful and I sympathised with her and could see why she ended up like that, but they were secondary to her story. The primary point was her being a single mother, and they just did not sell that story well. Additionally, I've never been much of a fan of GHJ's acting, so that didn't help either.

Her chemistry with KHN was lacking in so many aspects in my opinion. For a drama with romance, that completely destroys that part of the plot. No amount of well written scenes can break down the walls built by a lack of chemistry

I actually stopped watching this halfway into the very last episode. The scene where they caught the serial killer made me so upset I just couldn't continue. The narration, talking about strength and all that was the final nail in the coffin. It made it sound, and look, like the other victims of the killer had just been weak and not "girlboss" enough and that's why they died.

Every possibly redeeming plot point of the drama was just so poorly approached and executed. Even my rating of a 6.5 often feels too generous.

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A certainly alluring watch

Bai Lu's enchanting visuals brought me running to watch this drama, and her exceptional acting kept me all the way to the last episode.

Let me start by bringing the spotlight on the amazing visuals of the entire cast. Everyone was so beautiful, it seemed like that was a requirement just to make it to the audition room. It certainly made every scene a treat to watch.

I absolutely adore dramas with a multiple reams plot, especially where the female lead's origin is packed with a punch of surprise where it turns out she's much more powerful than it seems. Add a seemingly cold male lead who turns out to have a heart of gold, and you've won my heart.

Bai Lu and Ao Rui Peng have delectable chemistry as Bai Shuo and Fan Yue; I could not get enough of them. Their performances both separately and together were praiseworthy, and they've definitely earned a loyal fan in me. You could feel every single one of their emotion amplified, as if you were right there with them, experiencing it all.

Dai Lu Wa played my favourite character(s) as Fu Ling and later Bai Xi. She's a great performer and always seemed to know exactly what to do with her characters. She showed every angle of their complex personalities with an admirable ease, and I simply must applaud her.

All the side characters were intriguing and fun to watch. They ranged from playful and funny to tortured and serious, and each one of them grabbed your attention. The costumers were magnificent. This is one of the best dramas when it comes to the costume and makeup departments, I cannot let that go unsaid. The use of colours to depict the changes in personality and progress in journeys of characters did not go unnoticed by me.

I also adored Ling Long and Rong Xian's story so much. I really wish they could get some sort of spinoff, perhaps a reincarnation story. It was so beautiful to watch. Very few dramas can successfully manage to have subplots focused on other characters, but the writers of Moonlight Mystique did it without breaking a sweat.

This drama did not disappoint in any way, although the CGI isn't exactly the best, but that's not reason enough to peg any points.

It felt like a sad ending regardless of their reunion, because everyone else was gone. In the end Bai Shuo failed to protect those she cherished, except for one. It's sometimes sad, isn't it? To live in all the joys you dreamt of, but have no one to share them with. To make it to the end of the journey, and look back to see almost none of the faces you started with.

All but one of the petals of Bai Shuo's flowers wilted and fell to the ground, hopefully to be reborn in another tomorrow.

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