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Completed
Once Again
4 people found this review helpful
by Soula
Sep 17, 2020
100 of 100 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.5
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 8.5
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 6.5

Casual, entertaining, family drama - not heavy with melodrama

I feel really torn as how to rate this drama because there were characters that I really adored and then parts of the story that I simply did not enjoy and could have done without. With the drama being 100 episodes (50+ hours!), it makes it even more difficult to give it a fair rating reflective of the overall drama. I have settled on a 7.5, not because it wasn't very enjoyable, but because it simply wasn't perfect - if I were to rewatch this drama, I would only watch for the characters/parts of the story I liked and skip through the rest.

My absolute favorite thing from this entire drama was the relationship between the Yoon doctor brothers - Yoon Gyu Jin and Yoon Jae Suk. These brothers are the epitome of what it is to be a sibling; you love each other, but show it in the oddest ways, bickering like children every chance you can. If you are a sibling, you will definitely associate with these siblings. They cracked me up with their antics, while simultaneously leaving me full and happy with the authenticity of their sibling relationship. The way the writers wrote their relationship dynamics were perfect. I could watch a drama just about them and their lives and be so very happy and entertained.

I also really enjoyed Kang Cho Yeon. Yes, she was very much a bull-in-a-China-shop, but finding her family really helped mellow her out and she became so much more beautiful because you could really tell she became happy. And while I felt her and Song Young Dal recognizing each other as siblings was a bit drawn out in the plot, it was still wonderful once finally established. Seeing everyone together as a huge happy family was really satisfying.

In regards to the romance in this drama (there were a CRAP TON of pairings) I think the couple that carried this drama was the doctor couple, Song Na Hee and Yoon Gyu Jin. They were a couple with serious issues in the beginning even though they still sincerely loved each other (buried deep beneath all the accumulated miscommunication and resentment). Over the 100 episodes, they grew and changed to take care of each other, learning how to love each other again. It was a really well written evolution between the two of them. Their story was what I really kept watching this drama for. I just needed to know how things unfolded for them.

So, the things I didn't like? Hmm. To keep it brief and general:
I felt like some of the romantic pairings were rushed and therefore had no real substance to their attraction. I also felt like some of the romantic pairings were alluded to, but were never confirmed on screen (which, as you can imagine, is super frustrating when you have invested so much time). And then I felt that some of the romantic pairings were simply all wrong and they shouldn't have been put together at all. There were also some characters that I just didn't like, even if the writers tried to "redeem" them. These might seem like small things, but when there are so many romantic pairings, characters, and episodes, these flaws build up into a larger mass of dissatisfaction. Perhaps I'm being too picky, especially for a family drama?

There's so much more I can say about this drama in regards to specific details, but these were the important parts that really stood out to me. The things I loved, mentioned above, were obviously enough to keep me invested in watching all 100 episodes, regardless of character/relationship/plot flaws. I wouldn't necessarily recommend to binge watch Once Again, but I would recommend watching it with a buddy, as I did. Having someone to bounce thoughts off of while casually watching Once Again was the perfect way to enjoy this drama without taking it too terribly seriously. While my 7.5 rating appears mediocre, please recognize that due to the nature of longer family dramas, it is rather inevitable that the story is a bit messier and therefore, not flawless, but enjoyable all the same. If you enjoy family dramas, I would say, give it a chance - there's nothing too heavy or melodramatic in this family drama, which I think makes it a safe family drama selection.

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Completed
It's Okay to Not Be Okay
4 people found this review helpful
by Soula
Aug 10, 2020
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 9.5
Acting/Cast 10
Music 9.5
Rewatch Value 10
This review may contain spoilers
I can't go on enough about how much I adored this drama. The premise, an autistic older brother being taken care of by his younger brother and their connection to a troubled author, had me curious.
Not only was the story beautiful, watching each character grow, mature, and *heal* but the actors were spectacular. I think that the drama would not have been nearly as fantastic without this cast - their dynamics and chemistry really perfected the scenes.
Seo Ye Ji was just as incredible as she has been in all the other dramas I've seen her in, but I was still very impressed by her wholehearted performance. Playing such an initially cold-hearted and stoic character is no easy feat that she pulled off perfectly.
Kim Soo Hyun made an exceptionally strong comeback with this drama being his first since coming back from the military. His acting brought tears to my eyes and induced goosebumps. He's also particularly beautiful, so win-win! :D
Oh Jung Se was also spectacular in his own right, though it was very odd to see him play such a unique character. Having 1st hand experience with autistic individuals, I can confidently say that he portrayed Moon Sang Tae masterfully. And he portrayed his growth in such a realistic and raw fashion - he too brought tears to my eyes numerous times.
Honestly, all the actors were absolute perfection, elevating this drama to the level of "masterpiece."

While the OST is really exquisite and the song placement is perfectly executed, the songs themselves are not my absolute, hands down, favorite ever. The songs are a bit eerie and sad, yet harmonious and calm (for the most part) - there's nothing objectively wrong with any of them, and the OST really is beautiful, but it's just not my 100% #1 favorite. Still exquisite though! ^-^

***SPOILER BELOW***
The only thing I do have a gripe about was how Ko Mun Young's mother survived that fall AND drowning to continue to terrorize Ko Mun Young 20 years later. I just have a really hard time buying this part of the plot. I think the writers were trying to mislead viewers to think the mother *couldn't* have survived for greater impact when we found out that indeed she did survive and she was right under their nose the whole time. But the medical and logical side of my brain is twitching at this plot device. :P
***END SPOILER****

Fortunately, the above-mentioned plot issue I have does not bring down the overall drama because everything else was so perfect. I will say though, be prepared for your mind to run wild with plot theories while watching the drama. There are so many clues, many of which are purposefully misleading where you'll drive yourself crazy trying to figure it all out. Now that all the episodes are released, do yourself a favor and go ahead and dedicate about 18.5 hours to binge watch the entire thing!

Overall, It's Okay to Not Be Okay is not your typical drama - it's super quirky and the character's and their lives are very unique to this story. But it has so many things that the average viewer can sympathize with and it just overall pulls at your heartstrings (and the chemistry is ON POINT) - not just the main characters, but the equally well-written side characters and their stories too. You can't help but be enthralled by their stories and it's quirkiness. The love story between Ko Mun Young and Moon Gang Tae that developed through their own healing was real and stunning. And watching Moon Sang Tae's metamorphosis, going from being child-like to a true older brother and adult (while keeping his character true to his autism) was magnificent. And witnessing them all become a healed family was extraordinary.

I have already watched this drama about 3 times (I rewatched each episode at least twice while it was airing because I just couldn't get enough) and I will most definitely be rewatching it again. If you're not sure about watching, give the first 2 episodes a try - I'm confident that that's all it'll take to suck you in. ^-^

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Completed
The Most Ordinary Romance
4 people found this review helpful
by Soula
Apr 4, 2020
Completed 0
Overall 6.5
Story 6.5
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 6.5
Rewatch Value 5.0
This review may contain spoilers
I think maybe I have a very different opinion about this movie than a lot of other people. My biggest dislike about this movie is how many characters are cheaters. I just find it very distasteful (the significant other who is cheating and the person the significant other is cheating with are both equally disgusting to me). With that being said, cheating and lying between characters is what the plot is built on to propel the story, so I wasn't crazy about the overall movie by the end.

BUT the movie was good for it's entertainment factor. There were quite a few humorous moments when watching interactions between characters during specific scenes. The ending was also happily-ever-after so that was good. I also found that the 2 MCs had good chemistry and the supporting cast were well selected and just as entertaining to witness.

Honestly, there's not a lot of plot progression - everyone is simply getting drunk/unwinding after work and trying to get over their ex/significant others in their own ways. It's a pretty chill plot, so if people don't mind the cheater sub-plot then I suppose it would be much more entertaining. *shrugs*

Personally, I don't think I would recommend this movie to anyone - it wasn't a bad movie, but it wasn't particularly good for it to stand out to be recommendable against other amazing-er movies. XD

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Completed
The King's Letters
4 people found this review helpful
by Soula
Mar 20, 2020
Completed 0
Overall 6.5
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 7.0
Music 6.0
Rewatch Value 5.0
This movie was interesting for a historical drama depicting the writer's take on how the Korean alphabet came into existence. It was not particularly engrossing or exciting, but it was interesting to watch things unfold in a theatrical presentation. And culturally and linguistically speaking, watching the development of the Korean language was very interesting.

I would not recommend this movie to the average viewer. If you do not have an interest in culture, language, and/or history, you will likely find this movie boring and dry. But if you do have an interest in at least one of those things, you will walk away feeling inspired, even if creative liberties have been made.

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Completed
My Bossy Girl
4 people found this review helpful
by Soula
Feb 15, 2020
Completed 0
Overall 6.5
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 6.0
Music 5.5
Rewatch Value 6.5
I was really excited to see this movie because it revolves around a college-aged girl who has a disability (in a wheelchair), which is a refreshingly inclusive story, not often seen in the fiction world.

The story was decent, but not breathtaking. It was a nice story, but not exceptionally told. There was nothing necessarily wrong with it, but it would have been made that much better if the character's back stories had more depth (they're alluded to, but never really explained) and the side characters were given more distinguishing character and development.

The music was not memorable, but not unpleasant either.

The actors were well selected, but nothing exceptional. They fit their roles well and played their characters sufficiently.

I'm not sure if I'll ever rewatch it, but I liked it enough to perhaps watch again if someone really wanted to watch it together.

Altogether, what made this drama likable was the pleasant romance between the two MCs. Their romance was a tad slow and rather surface-level in depth, but pleasant nonetheless. The ending was nice too.

What brings this story down is the lack of in-depth substance to the story. What brings this story up is that it stars a minority in society and tells their story pleasantly, however brief and general. It also had some comedic moments, which I always appreciate.

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Completed
Angel's Last Mission: Love
4 people found this review helpful
by Soula
Jan 1, 2020
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 4
Overall 6.5
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 6.5
Rewatch Value 3.0
The beginning of this drama was extremely strong, with comedy, tragedy, and budding romance. But towards the last 3/4, things started to get messy. I honestly finished it because of the impeccable performances of the actors. Our main leads were amazing - I truly teared up numerous times on behalf of their characters. Shin Hye Sun will forever be one of my favorites - the emotion she can convey in just her facial expressions is astounding.

Overall, the drama was decent, but would have likely scored higher from me if the ending made more logical scene. I had no issues with the angel concepts throughout the drama, but things became a bit religiously heavy for me with some consistency of rules and explanations missing, which made things confusing in the end.

For example, the ending... Don't get me wrong - I liked the ending, but it doesn't make logical sense to me... If God said _______ can't happen because those were His rules, but then granted ________ in the end (even though it was made abundantly clear that exceptions weren't made), I'm left confused, which takes away from the overall drama.

God's character was more of a general concept in the beginning of the drama, but near the end, he became a more concrete being who would smite those who go against His will. This definitely caused the drama to become heavier and more tragic. As His character became more concrete, I think the drama would have benefited from some explanations and/or clarifications to help justify his motives and goals, aiding in story cohesiveness and audience understanding. With these explanations missing, God's character became difficult to understand with no clear stand. Is He merciful or is He taking pity? Did He give up because they were so persistent? Or did Dan/Yeon Seo earn their ending? Or was it something else? While some might be comfortable with this ambiguity, I am not. Especially when there are such dire consequences for choices made. Writers explained why Dan didn't disappear and successfully "completed his mission," so why not be as thorough in the final ending?

Perhaps I am taking this story way too seriously, but it has left me pondering many things..

Anyways, I don't think I will recommend this drama....Not because it wasn't good, but because I personally struggle with understanding God's character here, which makes the overall message and moral difficult to decipher.

***Note: Please, Come Back Mister, is a drama which I personally believe was much more successful in delivering a story about heavenly beings protecting those living on Earth in a more clear, consistent, and balanced manner.

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Completed
Drama Special Season 11: Traces of Love
3 people found this review helpful
by Soula
Dec 25, 2020
1 of 1 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 7.5
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 6.0

Totally worth watching for Lee Sang Yeob!

I didn't even know 1 episode "dramas" existed, courtesy of KBS's yearly drama special series, but I'm glad to have stumbled upon them. These 1 hour-ish short stories are great to watch when you're in a funk or don't want to commit to a longer drama or just need a satisfying break.

What made this drama worth watching was seeing Lee Sang Yeob. I absolutely adored him in Once Again and when I saw him in the trailer for this drama, I just had to watch it, especially considering it was a romance. And let me tell you, he did not disappoint. His acting was stellar, as expected. I even cried at one point when he portrayed his character's heartbreak.

Lee Yoo Young was okay. I've only seen her in 1 other drama (Tunnel) and she's just an odd person to me.

The ending was slightly rushed - I would have been okay with a slightly more drawn out, developed conclusion to their rekindled romance, but perhaps that was due to time constraints?

I didn't really notice the music, though, that's not surprising in an hour long drama.

I don't likely think I'll rewatch this. Not because it wasn't good, but because I'm not a huge fan of the FMC/actress.

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Completed
Double World
3 people found this review helpful
by Soula
Sep 5, 2020
Completed 0
Overall 5.5
Story 6.0
Acting/Cast 6.0
Music 6.0
Rewatch Value 4.0

Disappointing: Rushed plot leads to underdeveloped characters

Double World was a highly anticipated movie for me for 2 reasons: Henry Lau and the OST MV "Don't Go" (also by Henry Lau). Both these aspects had me looking forward to the movie - it looked intense and interesting!

Unfortunately, while the cinematography and set/costumes quality were great, the story really suffered from rushed execution of plot and poor character development. Due to the extremely rushed story, we do not get a chance to really get to know the main characters nor really capture the character dynamics between MCs. This was super disappointing because each of the MCs had so much potential to be interesting, but their stories were wasted due to their poor character development and rushed telling of the story. It felt like the writers were trying to fit a bunch into the movie, but to compensate for the amount they wanted to fit in, they rushed every plot point to fit everything in, sacrificing adequate development of both characters and plot. This was devastating to my overall enjoyment of the movie because in the end, when tragedy hit, I felt nothing. I wasn't sitting on the edge of my seat with anticipation/worry; rather, I was sitting back, kind of shrugging at the new development, unmoved.

*sigh* Overall, Double World is a serious letdown. It wasn't bad, but it severely missed the mark of "awesome" since you could taste the potential of the characters (and plot) but they were never given the opportunity to grow and shine. I would not recommend Double World, nor will I be watching it again.

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Completed
Doctor John
3 people found this review helpful
by Soula
Sep 10, 2019
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.5
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 5.0
I really enjoyed this drama up until the very end. There was nothing bad about the ending, just that there was nothing amazing about it. They were leading up to an amazing resolution between the characters and plot and it just fell flat. The romance wasn't particularly satisfying and the time-jumps in the final episode felt like a cop-out. By incorporating the time-jumps they didn't have to really work *through* the problems, they just kind of fast-forwarded to the "happy ending" like it just happened over time naturally. It wasn't satisfying at all. Especially for all the emotions I invested into this drama. Up till the ending though, the story was amazing and well-thought out. I very much enjoyed it. The OST is great and paired well with the drama as a whole. Acting was also superb! Ji Sung has an intensely sexy smolder, if you didn't already know. XD All the other actors were also enjoyable. Due to the ending, I'm not sure I would recommend this drama, but if it really draws you in, I wouldn't dissuade you from watching it either. This drama is definitely more suited for people who enjoy medical dramas.

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Completed
Mad Dog
3 people found this review helpful
by Soula
Apr 28, 2019
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 5.0
Mad Dog is a drama that has been on my plan-to-watch list for quite some time due to watching some really intense music videos on Youtube with clips from the drama. The clips were really sad and intense, which left me feeling very intrigued. I finally started it and enjoyed it well enough, but it's not a favorite.

To start, I wasn't really a fan of Kim Min Joon for the first half of the series- he was arrogant and rude and that made his scenes with the other characters unpleasant to watch for me. Even after finding out why Min Joon was the way he was, it didn't make it any less uncomfortable/infuriating to watch him treat others so harshly.

The other thing that bothered me was how the bad guys seemed to literally be getting away with everything every single time the Mad Dog team tried to catch them, which got old. I don't feel that the amount of times the bad guys got away made logical sense. Due to the bad guys getting away every time, it made the story drag much more than I think it should have.

Mad Dog is one of those dramas that if I didn't watch all of the episodes back-to-back, I probably wouldn't have finished watching the drama. What *did* keep me interested were the small moments of comedy within the Mad Dog team.

Would I recommend this drama? Meh. I don't think it was bad and it *did* have it's enjoyable moments - if you're intrigued by what you see in clips, I think it's worth satisfying that curiosity for you. The actors are really fantastic and the soundtrack and the plot are enjoyable enough. If your curiosity is not stirred by the clips you see, I would say that you are not missing too terribly much so it wouldn't be a big deal if you skipped this drama. I liked the drama overall, I didn't love it, but it was worth the watch to satiate my curiosity.

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Completed
Hit the Top
3 people found this review helpful
by Soula
Nov 5, 2018
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10
The Best Hit is one of those unexpected gems that you don't expect much going into it, but find it to be entertaining episode after episode. Plus, I was one of the fortunate viewers who shipped the two characters throughout the drama who did end up being together, which simply made me ecstatic!

The OST is wonderfully catchy - I've been listening to it's soundtrack DAYS later. I've also discovered new actors that I thoroughly enjoy and would like to see again in other dramas, specifically Yoon Shi Yoon, Kim Min Jae (*love* his dimples!) and Cha Eun Woo.

This drama is very light with no real bad guys. I think the reason why I enjoyed it as much as I did is because it constantly had me laughing with the character's antics and incorporated comic-relief noises that simply made *me* feel lighthearted while watching. It's not the plot itself that's wonderful, but instead, the atmosphere the characters and *their* stories create. That's what hooked me and kept me watching happily till the end.

UPDATE: Rewatched 1/2021 - I *still* adore the main couple pairing (swooned often! Haha!), but this time around, I really came to appreciate the side characters more. The familial relationships created between Gwang Jae and Lee Soon Tae (President Soondae hehe) especially was really precious. When I first watched TBH, I remembered not really caring for the romance and relationship between Gwang Jae and Bo Hee, but watching it again now, everything leading up to them adopting Mal Sook was sweeter. Also, I *completely* forgot why Hyun Jae disappeared in the past (1994) (I'm getting old! ;D)! Yoon Shi Yoon really *is* a good actor - the way he depicted his 1994-self compared to his 1993-self was really good - I could *feel* the change in feelings and emotion between both selves. Even Lee Se Young was spectacular in demonstrating her heartbreak before the resolution to the drama. Anyways, the point in this update is: I wasn't sure if I'd like this drama as a rewatch and I needed to confirm if it's really one of my favorites, hence the rewatch. TBH truly is a drama that makes you all school-girly with loads of giggles and sweet relationships. I still 100% recommend after 2.5 years, even if the time travel and celebrity occupations aren't your preferred tropes.

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Completed
Mr. Queen
8 people found this review helpful
by Soula
Feb 16, 2021
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 6
Overall 7.0
Story 7.5
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 5.0
This review may contain spoilers

Do you love the shell or the mind? My answer by the end...Love. Is. Love.

Shin Hye Sun is what drew me into watching this drama in the first place - I've loved her in everything I've seen her in. The beginning of Mr. Queen was pretty rough for me. The first couple of episodes were sincerely awkward and over-the-top silly to watch. I've watched a number of historicals, most of which I enjoyed, and so watching this felt like satire. But slowly (VERY slowly), I came to appreciate the beauty in this story; it took until about half way through the drama for me to no longer feel bored and start genuinely enjoying the story and character dynamics.

Shin Hye Sun really is what carries this drama. Her acting is impeccable - I could feel all her emotion in just her facial expressions. And the way she impersonates a man was spot-on!
Kim Jung Hyun unfortunately just didn't do it for me. I've never really had an opinion about him either way in all the dramas I've seen him in (so far, I've liked him best as Alberto in Crash Landing On You), but in this one, I just don't think he was the right fit. He doesn't have the presence for the type of character he was trying to embody, which was a pity. But by the end of the drama, I had simply come to terms with his lacking qualities in portraying his character and just enjoyed the drama for what it was.

Plot-wise, I found the second half of the drama much more interesting and entertaining to watch than the first half (which, honestly, was terribly boring for me). And I'll be completely honest: It took a little while, but I really came to terms with the odd romantic dynamic between the King and Jang Bong Hwan...and liked it and rooted for them!

Mr. Queen sincerely challenged the way I perceive romantic love; it was something I had to acknowledge about myself and then push past the initial discomfort so I could see the beauty of this love. The portrayal and development of their romance was really so well done on the writer's part, where it had nothing to do with gender, that I couldn't deny their love. Do you simply love the shell? Do you actually love the mind regardless of the shell? Is it both? And what I came to realize is that there's no real right answer. Love. Is. Love. *Sigh*
So yes, I am one of the people who just wasn't satisfied with the ending.

If the story was not going to turn out having a romantic ending for Jang Bong Hwan, why have him feel those romantic feelings toward the King? I don't agree that So Yong's spirit inside the Queen's body made Jang Bong Hwan feel romantic feelings for the King. I just don't think it was that simple. Jang Bong Hwan came to care for the King as a person while seeing him struggle and looking past the mask he wore in front of the court. You see this breakthrough in the first half of the drama while the King struggles with maintaining his façade in the palace.
To be clear: I'm okay with Jang Bong Hwan going back to present day. I mean, come on, if So Yong's spirit is still in there, she deserves to live too. I'm totally for that. BUT, why doesn't Jang Bong Hwan get a romantic ending too? It felt like Jang Bong Hwan did all the hard work in getting the King to fall in love with the Queen, his feelings getting tangled up along the way, but he doesn't get to reap the rewards. And honestly, the King loved the Queen BECAUSE of Jang Bong Hwan. I'm not sure if he would have been drawn to her had Jang Bong Hwan not been impacting her behavior. It's even implied that the King noticed that things were different....the dramatic irony is that Kim Byung In didn't notice the change in the Queen...with the King noticing it, you'd expect him to then long for what was missing, right?
Also, you've seen it so many times in dramas - why didn't they do some form of reincarnation of the King in present day as a woman so Jang Bong Hwan gets his romantic happily ever after??? They've done it so many times before. Such a wasted opportunity.

Due to these points, I am having trouble feeling satisfaction with the ending of this drama. I understand that due to social taboos in South Korea, the writers felt pressure to be more conservative in representing sexuality, but it just feels supremely unfair to Jang Bong Hwan. I truly believe based on their dynamics, inner monologues, and interactions, he romantically loved the King, not just So Yong's affections coming through and imprinting on him. His feelings developed and grew over time in a reasonable fashion. Even though Mr. Queen is not nearly as tragic, this ending reminds me of the lacking ending from Scarlet Heart. *sigh*

The OST was really great! "Here I Am" by Jo Hyun Ah was my absolute favorite in the entire drama. I absolutely adored her voice and the melody. *applause*

I don't think I would be able to rewatch this and I personally didn't enjoy it enough to warrant recommending it to others. Shin Hye Sun was amazing, but...the story, the comedy, and the unsatisfactory ending are enough for me to just feel meh about it.

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Completed
The Flu
4 people found this review helpful
by Soula
Oct 5, 2020
Completed 0
Overall 8.5
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 8.5

Intense movie - might hit a bit too close to home, but rewatch-worthy

I really liked this movie. It's been on my list forever and with the current COVID-19 climate, as morbid as it sounds, it seemed like a rather fitting time to watch it. What had me the most intrigued was the FMC's daughter, Mi Reu - her role in the story dynamics had me curious as to how the story played out. And man I was NOT disappointed!

The story was a good pace and the intensity was real. The atrocities that occurred during this fictitious outbreak had me feeling so grateful that modern-day Earth nations handled COVID so civilly. While watching the events in the story unfold - the push and pull between medical staff and government officials and military - I experienced a range of emotions from disgusted to enraged to delighted to worried to grateful, etc. The scenes and pacing were well balanced and kept me thoroughly emotionally engaged.

I really liked the dynamics between the two MCs, Ji Goo and In Hae. In Hae seemed like a pain in the ass at first, but she was alright - she was just trying to do her job and care for her daughter, no more, no less. Ji Goo is simply a good man - he does the right thing because he knows it's right, not because anyone is looking. I loved that about him. He took care of Mi Reu (In Hae's daughter) simply because he grew attached to her and knew he *could* help, even if it put him in danger. The relationship he developed with Mi Reu had my chest tight with worry in anticipation for how the story ended. >.<

The ending was great! I didn't see the story taking all it's turns and twists (issues with containing the disease, issues with preventing the spread of the disease, issues with curing the disease, issues between governments over international risk, etc.), but by the end, I was very satisfied! That one scene were Mi Reu protects her mom and Ji Goo holds them had me crying, goosebumps all over my flesh. It was fantastic and the build of emotions was beautifully executed.

Overall, I would recommend this movie. It's definitely serious and has a lot of things that are a bit hard to watch (the politics alone are enough to send anyone into a fit of rage), but the movie as a whole was really well paced and satisfying. Be sure to watch the epilogue - it brings everything full circle - had me smiling ear to ear! :D

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The Romance of Tiger and Rose
4 people found this review helpful
by Soula
Jun 20, 2020
24 of 24 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 9.5
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10
The Romance of Tiger and Rose was unexpectedly perfect for me. I don't have a lot of C-dramas under my belt when compared to how many K-dramas I've watched, but I have been drawn to them recently for historicals because of the costumes and "epic" feels. I'm so glad I gave this a shot because it is now my absolute favorite C-drama I've watched so far! The trailer is very reflective of what to expect from this drama, which I really appreciate, because usually the trailers are super short and tell you NOTHING about the drama or they completely mislead the tone/theme of the drama.

Ryan Ding and Zhao Lu Si had exceptional chemistry and their acting was phenomenal! AND their voice actors were very well selected, which was a HUGE plus for me (many times, voice actors can be very distracting and awkward, taking away from the overall drama for me).

The balance of romance, comedy, and political intrigue was so well executed that I just wanted to watch more and more until I finished the story. I found myself rewinding many episodes just to watch a scene all over again because it was either HILARIOUS or pulled at my heartstrings. My heart really ached at times, especially when it came to QianQian and Han Shuo realizing their feelings for each other through misunderstandings and heartbreak. The tension built up between them and then the betrayals/tragedy of their romance had me eating the story up while crying! XP

The ending (last 4 episodes) wasn't as good as the rest of the drama - the story somewhat slowed down... BUT I really loved how Chen Xiao Qian and her story evolved. She started in her story with all the knowledge to get along just fine in her fictional world, but as she forced her own survival as Chen QianQian, she changed the story so much so that by the end, she couldn't predict or ensure any ending based on her plans because things had changed too much for her to control. I really enjoyed watching this realistic development. And while things got a little boring and not as intense in episodes 22/23, I think it really gave Xiao Qian a greater sense of where her imperfections lie in her world-building of her story, so when she woke up, she knew how to further perfect her story.

The ending was life. I was so happy that things turned out that way because I don't think I would have been able to handle a true tragedy. AND the ending isn't too much for this genre, so it was a very happy, fitting ending. Some people are dissatisfied with their shortness of the ending, and while I wouldn't have complained to get a bit more of their happily-ever-ever, what was given was enough to satisfy me, so I'm happy. :D

I would recommend this to anyone. Really. If you like comedy and romance and don't mind historicals, this is a must watch. And even if you're not a huge fan of historicals, really, this drama is still fantastic. I can't rave enough about it! The Romance of Tiger and Rose is very much a character driven story: watching Han Shuo and QianQian fall in love, going from enemies-lovers and how their romance changes everything was such a wonderful experience that I can't help but want others to experience too! I will be watching again for sure!

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Completed
The King 2 Hearts
4 people found this review helpful
by Soula
Dec 27, 2018
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 6.0
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 5.0
Rewatch Value 3.0

You could skip this one if you're not drawn by the synopsis - you're not missing much

Kings2Hearts has been on my Plan To Watch list for a while. I was intrigued to watch it because it was a highly recommended drama, especially for Descendants of the Sun lovers, which I am. I liked quite a few things about this drama such as the story being about North and South Korea having peaceful negotiations between each other and the royalty plot concept for the main characters.

I initially dropped this drama after a couple episodes in and didn't come back to it for months because I found Ha Ji Won's character to be very inconsistent. But since dropping this drama, I ended up watching quite a few dramas with Ha Ji Won and Lee Seung Gi and I was itching to see them in something else and kept coming back to this one. I pushed through the poor initial character writing of Ha Ji Won's character in the beginning of King2Hearts and found a pretty decent story with some nasty twists and a SUPER crazy (truly insane) villain.

Overall, I feel just so-so about this drama. I found certain things exceptionally enjoyable to watch, but I found other things uninteresting to me. Probably my favorite episode was when the Koreans are competing in the WOC competition - that was cool and pretty intense!
The romance between the 2 MC's was okay, but I wasn't swooning over them or anything. The side characters were also pretty decent and enjoyable to watch.

The only real negative to this drama I found was that it didn't *have* to be 20 episodes. I think they could have definitely shrunk down the plot to fit into 16 episodes and that would have removed a lot of the B.S. of the bad guys winning or plotting again and AGAIN. -.- I found it annoyingly redundant by the end (but the resolution was good, so I wasn't too annoyed anymore haha).

Something I'd also like to note - I've done a lot of research on North Korea and read a lot of defector testimonials/autobiographies out of my own interest and curiosity....the portrayal of North Korea is entirely unrealistic and romanticized in this drama, which is fine, since it's a piece of fiction, but it *was* something I noticed.

King2Hearts isn't a drama I would go out of my way to recommend and I won't be watching it again.... It just wasn't good enough to warrant that kind of admiration. It wasn't a waste of time and if you have a real hankering for Ha Ji Won or Lee Seung Gi, it'll definitely satisfy you.

The OST was well-placed, but nothing terribly remarkable.

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